Snapshots
by ntc
Summary: A honeymoon provides Marlene with the perfect opportunity to learn more about the man she has a crush on. She soon discovers the indelible marks on his soul left by the people in his past. [Shonen ai, adult themes, slight AU and OOCness] Final chapter up
1. Chapter 1

**Summary:** A honeymoon provides Marlene with the perfect opportunity to learn more about the man she has a crush on. She soon discovers the indelible marks on his soul left by the people in his past. (_Warnings: Shonen-ai hints, adult themes, slight AU and OOC-ness_)

**Snapshots**

**A Final Fantasy VII Fanfiction by ntc**

_Part 1_

She would never forget how his sky-blue eyes, tinged with an inexplicable sorrow for as long as she had known him, exuded a genuine kindness that made an impression on her young heart. They've met only five times over the last three years— the times when he had visited her father to talk about the oil-drilling business and, more importantly, the updates on the lives of mutual old friends. She would then sit by her father's feet and listen in on their conversation, pricking her ears up in interest only when familiar names were mentioned (Tifa's being the most frequently mentioned). The rest of her attention was spent on studying the sad but kind man sitting opposite her father, for she knew it would be months down the track before she would see him again, and she wanted to etch every feature of his face in her memory.

At the age of five, she had made a secret vow to marry this man one day. Thinking back now, she could not remember what it was exactly that had prompted such a decision; but she strongly suspected that it had something to do with the flower the man had given her during their first encounter. It was the first time anyone had given her anything that was delicate and beautiful.

Of course, her father had provided for her needs amply all through her life, but he was a gruff man who showed his love in other ways— ways that did not involve the granting of fragile, transient gifts. He never appreciated the effectiveness of such simple gifts in winning over the hearts of the female population. That was probably the reason why it took so many years for Aunty Elmyra to become her current new mother. Her father's clumsy courting ritual involved mainly fixing leaking water pipes, clearing roof drains clogged up by autumn leaves, mowing the lawn twice a month and moving furniture around the house during the spring cleaning season.

Aunty Elmyra, on her part, would always cook an extra large portion of dinner for her father at the end of the day, and she would often find out what types of food her father liked (beef casserole being one of them) and made a point to cook those when she knew he would come over to her place to help her with one heavy-duty household chore or another. Being the precocious ten-year-old that she was at the time, she had been the one to bring up the idea of marriage. "Why don't you two tie the knot already?" Both of them blushed (though in her father's case it was hard to tell, him being so dark-skinned and all) and stammered and became absolutely fascinated by the water stains on the dining table. When the awkward silence stretched, she had followed that question with an observation. "Papa, if you marry Aunty Elmyra, we'll get to eat beef casserole everyday." Her father frantically made shushing gestures at her while Aunty Elmyra retreated to the kitchen to check on a pie that was baking in the oven.

It took a fair bit of prodding and plenty of not-so-subtle hints, but in the end both her father and Aunty Elmyra discovered that they wanted the same thing all along. They both wanted the other to be happy, and they both wanted her to be happy. And since she had made it abundantly clear what would make her happy, it wasn't long before the wedding ceremony took place at the small run-down church in Sector Five. That day, she had searched for him amongst the wedding guests and was not disappointed. He turned out to be the designated cameraman of the joyous event. It wasn't until later that she found out that his career actually centered on photography.

They took a picture together that day.

xXxXxXx

She cast her eyes about as she stood waiting at the central transport terminal at Kalm. A luggage bag almost as big as herself was positioned at her feet and a small backpack carried over her shoulders held the more essential traveler's belongings like money and phone cards. She was starting to feel a bit anxious, surrounded by the large number of strangers around her, and wished that the person she was waiting for would turn up soon. Still no sign of any golden spikes anywhere. She sighed and went back to examining the photograph clutched in her hand. Her lips curved up in a small smile, as they were wont to do every time she gazed at the image frozen in time and printed onto a piece of paper for her to enjoy and treasure at all times.

"Marlene? You're Marlene Wallace, aren't ya?"

Startled by the unfamiliar voice, she whipped her head around to face the person who had addressed her. A tall shady-looking man with a riot of fiery red hair loomed over her. The sunglasses that hid his eyes only made him look more menacing. He was the very picture of 'the scum of civilization' whom her father had warned her about— the type of ruffian who seemed capable of busting kneecaps and setting cats on fire for amusement. Spurred by an innate sense of self-preservation and her father's words of advice on what to do in such situations, she shrieked and made a mad dash towards the security guard station she recalled seeing earlier. Her escape was effectively nipped in the bud by a strong hand gripping the collar of her T-shirt. She could not move further than two steps away from the dangerous redhead, but she could still scream. She proceeded to do just that and continued to do so until she saw two security guards making their way towards them. The redhead was yelling something along the lines of "Will you stop that infernal caterwauling?" and "Shit! Look, I mean you no harm, okay?" but she was too busy creating a ruckus to pay him any heed.

"What's going on here?" demanded one of the burly uniformed guards who came to her rescue.

"Nothing to worry about, officers," said her captor smoothly. "My ward just got too excited when she saw me." The man then tried to pat her head but she jerked away from his touch.

"He's lying! I'm not…!" She quietened down and ceased her struggling when he shoved a rumpled photograph in front of her face. It was an exact duplicate of the one she held in her hand.

The guards eyed the red-haired man suspiciously. "What's your relationship with this girl?"

"I'm babysitting her for a friend."

The answer drew skeptical looks from the guards. Before they could question the man further, Marlene blurted, "You… you know Cloud?"

The man turned towards her and smiled. Suddenly, he did not appear so menacing after all. "Who else do you think I got the photo from?"

"Unfortunately, we can't just take your word for it," said one of the security guards finally. "This girl clearly doesn't recognize you. Show us your I.D. please."

The man muttered grumpily, "I should just do this at the beginning and save my breath trying to explain myself." When he slid a hand under his black jacket, the security guards tensed and tightened the grips on their batons. He pulled out a wallet and flipped it open to display his identity card.

The change in the attitude of the two guards was abrupt. They visibly paled and nearly tripped over themselves bowing and backing away nervously from the man, all the while burbling apologetic statements. "So sorry to bother you, sir!" "Didn't realize it was you, sir!" "We meant no disrespect, sir!"

Left on her own with the strange man who claimed to know Cloud, Marlene asked, "Where is he?" There was no need to say whom she meant by 'he'.

"He had something to do this morning and couldn't come himself." The man bent down to pick up her luggage bag and swung it over his shoulder almost effortlessly. "He asked me to pick you up in his stead."

The photograph could have been stolen, and a couple of security guards being terrified of the man was not proof enough that he could be trusted. "Cloud actually trusts you?" She could not keep the note of incredulity from her voice.

"Took me three years of cohabitating with the guy to earn me that trust. It wasn't easy, I tell ya."

"You two live _together_?" For some reason, that surprised her. Cloud had such a strong melancholy air to him— a melancholy that could only stem from great loneliness— that she was convinced that he must have been living alone. How could someone be so lonely even in the presence of company? Granted, said company was dubious at best, but it was still company nonetheless.

He smirked at her bewildered expression, looking extremely smug. "Care to visit our humble abode?"

xXxXxXx

"Here's the guest room where you'll be staying. The washroom is next to the kitchen. The washing machine— that's where you put the dirty laundry by the way— is outside on the balcony. Any questions?"

"Just one," said Marlene, after taking in the sparse furniture and decor in the small three-bedroom apartment.

"Shoot."

"Why can't I stay in Cloud's room instead?" She was at an age young enough to make such requests without causing too much awkwardness, and she fully intended to take advantage of it.

There was a long pause before he answered, "Cloud likes his privacy."

"I'm sure he wouldn't mind if I stay in his room," she insisted, not yet willing to give up. "I'll ask him when he comes back."

"No, Cloud would mind, but he'll be too polite to say 'no' if you ask, just coz you're Barret's daughter."

Was the man deliberately trying to dash her hopes of getting close to Cloud? She tried to keep her irritation in check. Maybe she was overreacting or reading too much into things. "Fine, I'll stay in this room then," she said sullenly. "I guess I'll just have to take your word for it."

"Hey, I'm not making this up. Cloud really doesn't savour the idea of anyone else rooming with him. Do you know how many times I've been rebuffed in the past?"

Before she could ponder the significance of that last statement, her thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of a motorcycle engine coming from downstairs. "That must be him," said Reno, walking towards the balcony. She followed him without thinking. "The meeting must have ended earlier than he expected."

Through the gaps between the railings at the edge of the balcony, she peered down and saw him just as he was getting off his massive black bike. Their eyes met when he tilted his head upwards in her direction. She noticed that he smiled, and that he appeared glad to see her. The next thing she noticed was that he had grown out his hair, his unruly pale locks now falling past his shoulders and secured in a ponytail. It made him look less like the ageless youth she remembered and more the mature adult whom he had always been. She preferred it when he had shorter hair. At least then the age difference between them wouldn't have been so obvious.

"Yo!" yelled Reno who was standing right next to her. Obnoxious _and_ loud… How someone as quiet as Cloud ended up acquiring a housemate like Reno was a great mystery that was itching to be solved. "You haven't forgotten my beer I hope!"

In reply, Cloud merely dug out a six-pack from the compartment under his motorcycle seat and held it up for display.

xXxXxXx

"So, your dad and Elmyra have decided to spend their honeymoon at Costa Del Sol?" enquired Cloud as he handed her a mug of hot chocolate.

Marlene nodded and sipped the sweet beverage happily. "They're also planning to visit North Corel if they get the chance. She is curious about Papa's hometown."

"I'm surprised that Barret is willing to leave you in my care during this time. I would have thought he'd prefer you to accompany them, honeymoon or no."

"He initially wanted me to come along as well, but once the notion of visiting North Corel was brought up, he'd rather I stayed here instead."

The girl's eyes grew thoughtful at this but Cloud kept quiet about his suspicions of Barret's intentions. He knew that his ex-teammate had his own reasons for not wanting Marlene to return to the mining town where her parents had died. In fact, he wasn't even sure if Marlene knew that Barret was not her real father.

"But why would he leave you here with us?" This from Reno who was sprawled on the couch in the living room with a can of beer in his hand. "You'd think that he would trust Tifa more when it comes to babysitting his precious daughter."

Cloud inwardly winced. Reno didn't know the meaning of tact sometimes. He wasn't surprised when Marlene's eyes began to mist over. "Am I a burden to you?" she whispered in a tremulous voice, as if she was dreading the answer. "Do you want me to leave?"

Cloud tried to reassure her by reaching out and giving her tiny hand an affectionate squeeze. "No, you're not and don't you ever think that. However, I'm afraid I won't be a very good host during this time because of my job commitments."

"Job commitments?" asked the young brunette curiously.

"Didn't I tell ya?" said Reno, butting into the conversation uninvited once again. "Cloud here is getting ready for his debut exhibition at the town gallery in a week's time."

"Exhibition? Really?" Marlene was practically bouncing with excitement. "Can I help out? I promise I wouldn't be a trouble to anyone."

Cloud laughed, not unkindly, at her childish exuberance. "Of course you can. But aren't there other parts of Kalm you want to visit while you're here? I can't expect you to stay in a stuffy gallery during your entire stay here."

"Oh, there's the library, the night market and I also heard that there's a stage show here that has been getting rave reviews in the papers. Can we go there together tomorrow, Cloud? That is, if you're not too busy with your work. But tomorrow's a public holiday and I was hoping that we can spend some time together…"

"Eh? I…uh…" It was true that tomorrow was a public holiday, but tomorrow was also the day that…

Reno joined them at the table and placed both his feet on the table. Cloud frowned in annoyance. He thought he had rid Reno of that bad habit months ago. "I can bring you to where ever you want, kiddo," Reno said to Marlene, who appeared less than thrilled with the proposition. "Cloud has important things to do tomorrow."

"But…!" protested Marlene.

"You can make a pest of yourself any other day, okay?" growled Reno, patting his pocket for cigarettes. "Just leave Cloud alone for tomorrow."

Cloud watched Reno silently, trying to catch any hint of how much he knew. "Smoke in the balcony if you have to, Reno. Not in here. On second thought, you should refrain from smoking completely while Marlene is here."

"Aw, hell! I'm sure she's made of sturdier stuff than that. Some passive smoking wouldn't kill her," complained Reno.

"And while you're refraining from smoking, you should also cut down on the cussing too. Barret will gun me down if his daughter returns home spouting some of your more colourful vocabulary."

"What! I don't suppose you'll start asking me to leave the toilet seat down from now on and stop squeezing the toothpaste tube at the middle just to please her!"

"You know, it really wouldn't hurt if you squeeze the toothpaste from the bottom instead of…"

"Argh!" Reno howled dramatically, as if all the injustices of the planet had suddenly fallen on his head.

Their bickering was brought to a halt by the sound of Marlene giggling. Like tiny bells jingling in crisp morning air. Like… Aeris. It took effort for Cloud to wipe off all traces of the ache he felt and grin at Marlene. He was relieved that Marlene had not been too hurt by Reno's rude behaviour and was enjoying herself, even if it was at Reno's expense. "What Reno said is true, Marlene. I don't think I'll be able to accompany you on your tour around Kalm tomorrow. But I promise I'll make it up to you another time."

"You should be grateful I'm willing to spend time with you, little minx," said Reno haughtily. Gods, would it kill the redhead to be civil to other people for once in his life?

"I have a name, you know," grumbled Marlene.

"That wouldn't be 'whiny brat' now, would it?"

Cloud flipped Reno's legs upwards until the chair tilted over and crashed onto the floor with the Turk still sitting in it. He didn't regret it, seeing how it had earned him another giggle from Marlene.

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**A/N:** This was originally meant to be a one-shot but the story was getting too long, so I had to split it into parts. The shonen-ai part doesn't come until later (but you can already guess who it'll involve, right?), and certain game events had to be changed to suit the story I want to tell. I hope people would still continue reading this fic despite the liberties I'll be taking with the original game storyline. Till next time then. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Snapshots**

**A Final Fantasy VII Fanfiction by ntc**

_Part 2_

'... _muscle cells retrieved from specimens injected with 50 mg of refined Mako and incubated for 3 days in glass culture plates are markedly larger than control cells (P 0.001 by Bonferroni's t-test, Graph 2c). However, cells seeded onto a matrix complex containing an equivalent amount of Mako, taking into account the volume of distribution and dilution effects of individual specimens, are not only relatively larger than cells obtained from Mako-injected specimens, but are also significantly more viable, as demonstrated by flow cytometry readings (Table 1b), giving rise to the hypothesis that_...'

Reno rubbed his temples wearily, the hours he spent poring through the scientific gobbledygook retrieved from Hojo's computer were finally taking their toll on him in the form of a throbbing headache that was not unlike the worst hangover he had ever experienced. He was no intellectual, dammit! As a professional thug, he was required to use his brawn, and his nightstick, way more frequently than his brain. It was one of the reasons why the job as a Turk fitted him like a glove. And here he was, subjecting himself to this mental torture day after day, all for the sake of…

Reno terminated the thought before it could reach its conclusion. He would not think about why he was doing this, why he needed to do this, and why there was this strong sense of urgency, of time running out, of… His eyes inadvertently strayed to the digital clock sitting next to the computer and widened as his brain finally registered what his eyes were telling him. With a curse, he shot up from his seat and rushed out of the apartment, bounding down the stairs two at a time.

xXxXxXx

"Some babysitter you are. You're more than an hour late," said Marlene huffily. She stood up from where she had been sitting on the steps leading to the main entrance of the library.

"So?" Reno shrugged. "Just grab a book and read if you're bored waiting for me."

"And what do you think I've been doing for the past five hours?" Marlene quipped, bristling at the unrepentant attitude of the older man. "I thought you were meant to show me the sights of Kalm, not dump me at various locations like a cabdriver."

"At least cabdrivers get paid in gil. All I'm getting from you for my troubles is lip."

Marlene sucked in her breath and barely stopped herself from proving the ill-mannered man right. Why was he so antagonistic towards her? She had to at least attempt to make peace with him, for Cloud's sake if for no other reason. "I'm sorry. I still haven't thanked you for bringing me here this morning, did I?" Marlene smiled apologetically at him. "Thank you, Reno."

The red-haired man blinked at her, clearly taken aback by the sudden change in her attitude. "You out in the sun too long, kid?"

"You…!" Marlene felt like chucking the hardcover novels she had borrowed from the library at the insufferable man's face. "I'm trying to be nice here! Why are you making so difficult!"

Reno grunted, "Well, stop it. It's creeping me out."

It occurred to Marlene that while Reno was amply equipped to deal with bad-ass attitude of any kind, he being an expert in it himself, he was unexpectedly vulnerable against amiable assaults. To test out her theory, she moved to embrace him, only to have her suspicions proven right when he backpedaled and fended her off with shooing motions. "Hey! I told you to cut it out! Why are you… What're you giggling about?"

Reno's irritated scowl only caused her to laugh in delight. Oh, she was going to have so much _fun_. She boldly seized one of Reno's hands and held on tight even as he tried to shake her off. Beaming at his discomfiture, Marlene said sweetly, "I'm hungry. Some pancakes for lunch would be lovely."

"Buy your own damned lunch!" After a few more half-hearted attempts to shake off her determined grip, Reno gave up. Marlene did not doubt that if Reno really wanted to, he could easily fling her ten feet away without breaking a sweat. The fact that he had given up before he could do her any serious injury only exposed him as the soft-centred crusty person that he was. His shoulders drooped in defeat. "Will you cease this clingy behaviour if I buy you pancakes?"

Marlene could not help smiling triumphantly. "I'll think about it."

Reno muttered something in a voice too low for her to hear properly, but the few phrases she could make out were definitely under the 'Language That Papa Does Not Approve Of' category. "You look so cute when you're flustered, Reno."

"Shut up, brat."

xXxXxXx

Cloud introduced her to a boy named Denzel during her first visit to the gallery. Denzel was one of the youths in the neighbourhood who was helping Cloud to set up the exhibition at the gallery and she gradually found herself wanting to spend more and more time with the friendly boy. Maybe it was because she hardly ever got the opportunity to spend time with children her age, and not having to crane her neck so much while having a conversation with someone was a nice change. They talked mostly about Cloud as he was the main thing common between them.

"So how did you get to know Cloud?"

Denzel laughed nervously. "It's embarrassing, really. The first time we met, he caught me in the process of hotwiring his motorbike."

"You didn't!" Marlene's voice held more fascination than outrage. "Then what happened?"

"Um, I did what any thief would in those circumstances. I panicked." A small flush crept across the boy's freckled cheeks. "While trying to get away, I nearly rode the motorbike into an oncoming truck. That was when Cloud saved my life for the first time. You wouldn't suspect it, just from looking at him, but he could move really fast if he wanted to. The bike winded up as a total wreck though, and Cloud made sure I paid for the damages in full by getting me to do whatever odd jobs he could find me."

"You said 'the first time'. Do you mean there are other times?"

Denzel scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "I was in a notorious street gang at the time. Let just say that no member is allowed to leave their gang without… punishment. I nearly didn't survive mine, and that was when Cloud turned up and saved my sorry hide a second time. He… I really don't deserve that. From then on, I've made up my mind to become someone who wouldn't be a burden to him. I want him to be proud of me."

Marlene could easily recognize the signs of hero-worship on the young boy's face. "You like Cloud, don't you?"

"No! Er… I mean, yes, of course I like Cloud, but not that kind of 'like', if you know what I mean. Besides, if there's anyone who can make that claim, it would be…"

"What do you mean by 'that kind of like'?" interrupted Marlene. "I thought you either like a person or you don't."

"Gosh, will you look at the time! I have to get going now. It's nice meeting you, Marlene."

"You're avoiding my question," said Marlene reproachfully.

"How about you?" Denzel countered her with a question of his own.

"What about me?"

"Do you like Cloud?"

Marlene's face took on a shade of red that rivalled the one on Denzel's. Fortunately, she was spared having to come up with a reply as Cloud had chosen that time to walk over towards them.

Cloud placed a hand on one of Marlene's shoulders as he addressed his young helper. "Thanks for your help today, Denzel."

"Hey, no probs, man. As long as I get paid, I'm more than willing to help out." Marlene was jealous of how quickly Denzel could beat down the blush which was definitely on his face a few seconds ago. "Say, Cloud, weren't you planning to put up Zack's photo too? I couldn't find any in the boxes you've brought in."

The hand that was resting on Marlene's shoulder trembled at the mention of the name. "Really? I'll have to remember to bring them in next time then."

Cloud had maintained a calm and indifferent tone throughout the exchange but Marlene could tell that it was all an act. She became determined to find out more about this 'Zack' person.

xXxXxXx

"Who is Zack?"

Reno levelled a steady gaze at the kid who had dared to voice that question… that name. "Who told you about Zack?"

They were both at the lounge in Cloud's apartment, and the girl had chosen a time when Cloud was out buying groceries to pop her question. That alone gave Reno clues as to how much she knew and didn't know. She knew, or at least suspected enough, not to question Cloud directly about Zack.

"No one. It was just a name that came up when I was at the gallery the other day." The girl dropped her gaze, unable to meet his eyes. "I was hoping that you can tell me more about her."

_Her?_ Did she think…? Reno decided that some payback was in order. That would teach the girl to spoil his macho-cool image with her sporadic hugs. "Zack has a face that's more handsome than pretty; moves with a deadly grace; able to mesmerize surrounding people with strong charisma and unparalleled leadership. Feared by some people, admired and loved by others."

"Zack and Cloud… are they…?" The girl looked so dejected that Reno almost felt guilty.

"They're very close friends," said Reno truthfully. "There's no doubt that there is love in their relationship."

The girl slinked away to her room, misery and heartbreak clearly written on her face. Reno watched her close the door behind her before walking out to the balcony. He lit up a cigarette, hoping the nicotine would calm his nerves.

"Heh… It's amazing how you still have the power to break hearts despite being dead all these years, you bastard," Reno muttered to no one in particular. "It's time for you to stay dead, Zack. Let go of the living… Let go of Cloud, who still mourns for you everyday and makes a damned pilgrimage to your gravesite every month without fail. Yours and Aeris's both."

Reno's grip on the railing of the balcony tightened until his knuckles turned white. His grey eyes glinted. "Because if you don't… I will have no choice but to take him away from you by force."

xXxXxXx

It was a memory which he tried to forget, but one which stubbornly refused to fade away. It was the one memory which made him unable to utterly despise his rival.

Zack had saved his life once in the midst of their ongoing conflict— between the ex-elite SOLDIER waging his one-man war against Shinra and the Turks, the Shinra family's personal team of terrorists, assassins and bodyguards. They had fought at the top of a burning building when a surrounding explosion, one set off by his very own grenade, sent him stumbling and falling off the edge of the building. He had thought he would die for sure, but a strong hand had gripped his arm and stopped him from plummeting to a messy death some thirty storeys down.

Between gasping for breath and kissing the solid ground beneath his feet, he had demanded the reason behind his enemy's illogical action. "Why didn't you let me die?"

"Because it'll make him sad, Reno," said the raven-haired swordsman with a roguish grin. "Besides, it's silly of us to be fighting each other when the person we both wish to protect above all else is the same."

He could not think of a suitable comeback to that remark, mainly because it was too close to the truth.

Zack had later died providing that protection. There were times when Reno wondered if it would have been better if he had been the one who had died instead of Zack. Would Cloud continue to cling to the memory of him, so much as to deny himself happiness? Or would he be happy, with Zack alive by his side?

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**A/N:** Thanks to all who have read the story, and especially those who have taken the time to review. Never underestimate the power of reviews. They don't necessarily make better writers of us all, but they do provide much needed boosts to the ego :P


	3. Chapter 3

**Snapshots**

**A Final Fantasy VII Fanfiction by ntc**

_Part 3_

The silver-haired youth screamed as more concentrated Mako was poured into the glass cage he was imprisoned in. The bespectacled scientist observed his test subject's agony with clinical detachment, occasionally jotting down his observations on a clipboard. His dispassionate eyes swept across the screen displaying the readings of his subject's vital signs from time to time. It would be such a waste if his subject expired before useful data could be obtained.

"Erm… do you think this is wise, Professor?" asked one of his lab assistants nervously. "That amount of Mako would normally…"

"You're not dealing with an ordinary human being here. This boy here is one of the original's clones. He is incapable of feeling pain or any other human emotions."

"But I don't see how subjecting Kadaj to more Mako would…"

"Kadaj?" asked the professor, his tone sharp.

The assistant fairly wilted from the heat of her supervisor's disapproval. "The subject's name is Kadaj, sir."

The professor shook his head in disgust at such foolish sentimentality. "Instead of wasting your time naming your guinea pigs, you should've put it to better use. How far have you gone in persuading the top brass to get us more Jenova tissue?"

"The president has agreed to send a task force to the Crater to retrieve Jenova's head. We should be hearing from them soon."

The professor grunted, mildly appeased. "I suppose there's little more that we can achieve here until we get hold of all the necessary materials for the experiment."

"So… does that mean we can stop this now, sir?" asked his assistant hopefully. "Kad… I mean, the subject is already afflicted with the Geostigma. We don't have to put him through any more of this…"

"You're developing an unhealthy attachment to the human guinea pig, Ms. Hayakawa," said the professor coldly. "This behaviour is highly unbecoming of a scientist of your stature."

The assistant bowed her head in shame. "Forgive me, sir."

xXxXxXx

Marlene stared at the slender woman in the picture with naked jealousy. _What does she have that I don't?_ The woman— no, girl— in the picture couldn't have been much older than her. Maybe sixteen or seventeen years old at most. The female ninja's face was angled to the side, and the play of sunlight on her only visible eye gave it a mischievous twinkle. An enormous shuriken was held casually in one hand while the other was pressed against her hip in a cocky, confident pose. Behind her, one could see the thick foliage of the forests of Wutai.

"What did she ever do to you, Marlene, to earn such a look from you?"

Marlene nearly let out a startled yelp and turned to find Denzel looking at her with an amused grin. Was she _that_ obvious? Flushing in embarrassment, she stammered, "W-What makes you say that?"

Denzel chuckled. "Oh, come now, Marlene. I noticed that you've been glaring at Yuffie's photograph for a good fifteen minutes now. Don't tell me she has stolen a Materia from you in the past…" His voice dwindled when he noticed Marlene's look of surprise.

"Yuf…fie?"

"Yeah, the Wutaian Materia-hunter who became a member of AVALANCHE— Yuffie Kisaragi." Denzel gave her a puzzled look. "Who did you think the lady in the photograph was?"

Marlene suddenly felt foolish. She had naturally assumed… But there weren't any other women in the photographs displayed in the gallery… excluding Tifa, that is. She recognized Tifa. "Er… Zack."

Denzel's reaction was not quite what she expected. He burst out laughing. When he was finally able to explain to her what was so funny, she found herself conjuring up uncharacteristic thoughts of extreme violence with regards to a certain chain-smoking redhead.

xXxXxXx

The phone rang shrilly, breaking his concentration on the computer screen. Annoyed at the interruption, he practically barked into the handset, "Who the hell is this?"

"You really should learn how to answer the phone in a less hostile manner, Reno," drawled the caller in a silky baritone.

"Rufus?" Surprise, as well as wariness, coloured Reno's tone.

"Yes, this is your boss calling." There was a brief pause. "Though I sometimes wonder whether that is still true. You haven't been in to work for months now."

Reno voiced the first excuse he could think of. "I've been busy. Besides, Rude and Elena can easily handle whatever jobs you might have for them."

"What are you busy with?"

"The same thing as you," Reno remarked cryptically.

There was an audible sigh from Rufus, who was clearly growing weary of his laconic replies. "The same thing being?"

Reno debated on whether to tell the truth. In the end, he decided that lying was pointless. "Finding a cure, of course."

"What do you hope to achieve on your own?" asked Rufus incredulously. "This is a task that is out of your area of expertise, Reno. Let the scientists do their job while you do yours."

"Well, forgive me for not sitting on my ass while I watch him die slowly in front of me, Rufus!" hissed Reno.

"You fool," snapped Rufus. "Has it not occurred to you that I'm in the same boat as well? I'm already doing everything in my power to expedite the research—"

"It's not enough!" Reno cried angrily. "It's too little, too late! He has been exposed to a great deal more Mako than you in the hands of that sadistic mad scientist, and for a much longer duration. He doesn't have as much time as you!"

Rufus patiently waited for his outburst to die down before responding, "You're still living with him, aren't you?"

Reno decided to ignore the question. Rufus already knew the answer to that, seeing how he had called Cloud's apartment to get in touch with him. "What business is it of yours, anyway?"

"Look, I promise you that once we have a cure, he'll be one of the first few to get it," said Rufus in an effort to placate him. "I can't help feeling that I'm partly responsible for… a lot of his suffering."

"It was your father, not you," said Reno tiredly. Tired, because he had pondered over the circumstances surrounding Zack's death repeatedly in his mind and could never quite work out who was ultimately responsible. "Your father was the one who ordered _his_ execution."

"And you Turks were the ones who carried out that order." When Reno remained silent, he continued, "Is that why you're staying with him? Because you feel guilty?"

"Ha! What's this talk of guilt? You know that I have no conscience to speak of." Reno snorted. "I'm doing this purely for my own selfish reasons."

There was a period of thoughtful silence before Rufus spoke again. "You do know there's no point in competing with a ghost, right? You'll never win."

Reno's grip on the handset tightened. "If you have nothing worthwhile to say, I'll hang up now."

"I'm just giving you some friendly advice, Reno. You're setting yourself up for a great deal of unnecessary pain which could destroy you eventually."

Reno hung up. And not a moment too soon either, for his bedroom door had chosen that moment to swing open with a loud bang.

"You lied to me!" cried an enraged prepubescent girl standing at his doorway. "You led me to believe that Zack is a woman!"

Reno smirked. What better way to distract himself from Rufus's ominous warnings than to tease this gullible imp before him? "Think back carefully, kid. I never once told you that Zack is a woman."

"Ooh! But you did imply it!" The diminutive brunette stomped her foot in a display of impotent anger. "You told me that they love each other!"

"I wasn't lying when I said that," said Reno seriously.

The girl opened and closed her mouth several times before choking out, "You… you mean that they… " She swallowed. "…They are lovers?"

Reno busied himself with the task of switching off the computer, not wanting her to witness his dark expression. "They never had that kind of relationship; but they might as well have been, for all the intimacy and deep connection that they shared. By the way, you needn't feel bothered by all this anymore coz Zack is dead already. He died many years back"

Marlene gasped in shock. "How?"

Reno closed his eyes, still keeping his back to the girl. "He was killed by the same people I work with." Damn the girl for dredging up memories that he would much prefer to have kept buried. "It turned out to be some stupid misunderstanding, but…" He laughed then; a laugh that was heavy with regret. "It doesn't matter now, does it? He's dead, and I'm responsible…"

"It wasn't your fault, Reno."

Reno's eyes widened and he whipped his head around to find Cloud standing next to Marlene. _Shit!_ He hadn't even heard the blond coming back. Usually he would have been given some warning of Cloud's return by the engine noise of his motorcycle. He forgot that Cloud had not ridden his motorcycle out that morning.

Cloud knelt down and spoke to Marlene at eye-level. "Can you leave us for a moment, Marlene? I'd like to have a private word with Reno." The girl's gaze darted between the two of them before she nodded and left quietly. Neither of them said anything until they heard the apartment door closing shut.

"I meant what I said, Reno," reiterated Cloud. "You shouldn't blame yourself for Zack's death."

"You… knew?" said Reno hoarsely.

Cloud smiled one of those smiles that totally pissed Reno off— the type of smile that had nothing to do with mirth and everything to do with pain and sorrow. "Yes, I knew it was Elena who shot fifteen rounds into Zack at point-blank range. I don't blame her either. She thought she was avenging Tseng's death."

"I could have stopped her…"

"No." Cloud stood up from his kneeling position. "No, you couldn't. That would require you to betray the Turks, and they're practically your family. If anyone is to be blamed for his death, it would've been me. I was the one who foolishly accepted Hojo's offer. I… I hated myself for being weak, for not being able to aid Zack in his battles. I wanted to become strong, as strong as him, as Sephiroth even… I didn't fully understand what Hojo's experiments entailed back then, and Zack had lost his life trying to rescue me—"

Cloud's words were cut off when Reno suddenly seized his shoulders and slammed him against the wall. "Stop it, already!" Cloud looked stunned but remained still as Reno proceeded to rest his chin on the blond fighter's shoulder. "If you want to play the blame game, blame me, or Elena, or Hojo, or Shinra, or even Sephiroth, for he was the one who drove Elena mad with grief by murdering Tseng. Just stop torturing yourself with guilt that ain't rightfully yours to begin with!" Cloud did not protest as Reno pulled him slightly away from the wall so that his arms could wrap around his back. "Damn you! Why can't you be happy? Why can't you forget him?"

"I did that once, Reno," said Cloud, his arms dangling at his sides. "And it nearly broke me when I started remembering."

Reno didn't say anything to that. He merely tightened his hold and concentrated on immersing himself in Cloud's scent and body warmth. He wished that the moment could stretch on for eternity. His concentration was broken when he felt Cloud's hesitant arms returning his embrace.

"I'm sorry, Reno."

"What are you apologizing for, idiot?" Reno growled, not revealing the fact that part of him was dancing with joy at having Cloud _hug him back_ at long last. "I've brought this on myself."

"But still… I'm sorry."

They remained in that position for a long time, reveling in the little comfort that they could draw from each other.

xXxXxXx

"I can't believe you still have this picture, after all these years."

Cloud chuckled. "How could I lose such an important photograph? It's one of the rare few that I've managed to take of happier times, before everything went to hell at Nibelheim."

Tifa flashed a small smile at him before returning her attention to the framed picture before them. The girl in the cowboy hat and white tank top was undoubtedly her, albeit a younger and more carefree her. Had she ever looked so young? Flanking her were Sephiroth and his effervescent first lieutenant Zack, with the Shinra mansion standing tall behind them. She could still catch glimpses of some of the houses of her old hometown in the background. No one in the small town has had any warning, then, of the tragedy which would soon befall them all. She mentally chided herself for allowing her thoughts to take such a morbid and gloomy turn. All of that was now history.

"What happened at Nibelheim?" asked Marlene, who was standing between them.

While Tifa was trying to think of a way to evade the question, Cloud answered for her. "Sephiroth descended into madness there, and tried to wipe out the very people he had been assigned to protect."

"Cloud!" Tifa exclaimed, shocked at his brutal honesty.

"Please," said Marlene, her expression earnest. "I want to know what happened."

"Well…" Skipping over the gruesome details of the massacre, Tifa tried to redirect the focus of the conversation elsewhere. "Have I ever told you that Cloud here saved my life back then? Just like a hero rescuing the damsel in distress in fairytales."

"Really?" Marlene's large eyes sparkled with interest and admiration, and Tifa knew that she had succeeded.

Cloud groaned. "I didn't…"

"You're too modest, Cloud," said Tifa, poking him in the ribs playfully. "You even dared to take on the legendary General Sephiroth and vanquish him in order to protect lil' ol' me. Even Zack wasn't able to stop Sephiroth."

"Zack wounded Sephiroth enough for me to finish the job," mumbled Cloud.

"So, you don't deny that you were the one who defeated Sephiroth in the end." Tifa grinned at Cloud's discomfiture at having made such an admission. "And you did it at a time when you weren't even a soldier; when you weren't even trained in the ways of combat." Tifa bent down to address Marlene directly. "Do you know what that is, Marlene? That's true courage, that's what it is. To keep your head up while others have theirs bowed. To stand up and fight where others have given up and surrendered. It doesn't take much courage to fight a battle you're sure to win; but it takes a whole lot of courage to fight one which you're sure to lose."

"If it is your diabolical intention to make me die of embarrassment, you're succeeding pretty well."

"The girl has the right to know what an amazing person you are, Cloud." Tifa laughed and hugged Cloud impulsively and Marlene could see his body stiffen in response. Tifa seemed to have sensed this as well, for she quickly let go and withdrew.

"I… I need to go now. I have an interview with a local reporter who's covering this exhibition."

Tifa sighed as she watched Cloud's back retreating in the distance. When she saw Marlene watching her, she smiled weakly at her. "I don't know why Cloud keeps pushing me away. He's so… distant… all the time, even when we're right next to each other. Every time I take one step forward, he leaps two steps back. I guess Aeris's sacrifice still weighs heavily on his heart."

"Aeris?"

"Don't you know her, Marlene? She did save you from those Shinra goons once, when you were younger. She's also Elmyra's daughter."

"No, I don't mean that I don't know who Aeris is… it's just…" Marlene cleared her throat self-consciously. "Who does Cloud love, do you know?"

Tifa did not reply immediately, seeming to take time to think her answer through carefully. "I don't know. Sometimes, I wonder whether he himself knows the answer to that question."

xXxXxXx

The apartment was dark when Reno stepped into it.

"Cloud?" Reno was about to call out 'little brat' as well but stopped himself when he recalled that the girl would be staying over at Tifa's for the night. _Great. Here we are, the two of us alone at last after so many days and he has to find something else to occupy himself with this very night._ He flipped the light switch on irritably and was about to trudge to the kitchen to fetch a beer when he noticed Cloud's collapsed form on the living room carpet.

"Cloud!" Reno rushed to the unconscious blond's side and frantically tried to feel for signs of breathing and a pulse with trembling fingers. He began to calm himself down only when he felt the evidence of a heartbeat beneath the fingertips he held against Cloud's pale neck. He proceeded to lift Cloud's body off the floor and deposit him gently on the sofa. Now there was nothing else he could do except wait. He sat down at the edge of the sofa, grateful for its adequate width.

As he lit up a cigarette, he remembered the first time this happened. He was more anxious then, going so far as to call the ambulance and then threaten to bash the heads of the doctors in the hospital when they failed to attend to Cloud soon enough for his liking. That was when Reno first learnt of Geostigma, and the eventual fate of its victims. Cloud had tried to brush it off as a benign 'fainting spell', and Reno had pretended to believe his lie.

Reno clasped his hands together to stop them from shaking so much. It's just nicotine withdrawal, that's all. He's not worried. There's no reason for him to be worried. Cloud would be fine. Just fine…

Cloud's eyelids fluttered and opened. He appeared disorientated initially but his eyes quickly gained their sharp focus when they locked onto his. "Reno?"

"Hey, sleepyhead." Reno was proud of the fact that he could keep his voice steady.

It didn't take long for Cloud to work out how he ended up stretched out on the couch. "How long am I out this time?"

Reno took a long drag on his cigarette. "Don't know. You were lying on the floor when I came back."

"Oh." Cloud's monosyllabic response sounded almost apologetic. When he tried to sit up, Reno placed a hand on his chest and pinned him back down on the couch.

In reply to Cloud's confused look, Reno muttered, "Lie still for a while. You might have had a concussion or something when you fell just now." He could not stop his fingers from brushing the golden bangs away from that angelic face. _Angelic?_ Ha! He'd be spouting poetry next if he wasn't careful.

"If I have a concussion, Reno, I doubt lying still would be of much help at all. And if, by some great misfortune, I really do have an extradural haematoma, I should be getting my head scanned and my skull burr-holed to relieve the pressure."

"Shut up. Just let me indulge myself for once…" And in a much softer voice, almost pleading. "Please."

Cloud, who was about to smack away the hand that was fiddling with his hair, paused. "Reno?"

"I wouldn't be feeling this shitty if I haven't… if only you…" Reno sighed. "Why can't you be a downright vile bastard whom I can hate, _really_ hate, Cloud?"

"Well, I did do everything short of maiming you to shut you out of my life three years ago, Reno. But you were too thick-headed to get the hint."

"Hey, as they say, the unattainable is often the most irresistible. Maybe if you had let me have my way with you…" The leer that accompanied the hanging sentence left little doubt as to what he meant by that. "… I would have grown bored of you and left you by now."

"Is it… too late now?"

Reno gaped in surprise and his cigarette came precariously close to slipping off his lower lip. Could that possibly have been an offer? It damned sure sounded like one, at least to his gutter of a mind. "Too late for what?" he asked, deliberately keeping his voice nonchalant.

"For you to have your way," said Cloud, his face all serious innocence. The pent-up longing and ravenous anticipation that flared up within Reno died with Cloud's next words. "So that you would leave me."

Reno's desire to kiss Cloud senseless was quickly replaced by the desire to punch him senseless instead. "You would do that? Just to get rid of me?" said Reno softly, sounding more bitter than angry. Before Cloud could open his mouth to answer, Reno dug his fingers into the blond's Geostigma-sensitized left arm. The only indication of pain from Cloud was his silence. "Stop tempting me, you asshole," Reno snarled. "We Turks are not known for our scruples. If I'm a lesser man, I'd take what you offer without a second thought and still stick to you like shit to a blanket."

Cloud grimaced at the overly vivid analogy. "I suppose I'm fortunate that you're not a lesser man then."

"Don't be so sure." Reno released Cloud and stepped away from the couch. He really didn't need all that physical proximity clouding his judgment and making him want to do things that he would definitely regret later. He didn't trust himself, even if Cloud did. "Besides, you're right. It's too late now."

Reno wondered when it was that he had stopped wanting only acceptance from Cloud and started wanting _everything_ from him. A pity shag wasn't enough anymore. Anything short of Cloud's entire heart, body, mind and soul just wasn't enough anymore. The thought was as corny as hell, but what made it even more pathetic was that it was also undeniably true. "I need to go out for a while. Don't wait up for me."

He did not turn his head even when Cloud called out after him. He just wanted to get away from the apartment before he lost himself to his anger and frustration. He found himself standing outside the Honey Bee Inn half an hour later. Being a fairly regular customer, the Turk was let into the premises without anyone accosting him.

"Ah, Master Reno, sir," greeted the manager of the place. "Mary is busy with another client at the moment. I'll send her to your room straight away once she's done."

Reno grabbed the key that was placed on the counter. "Not Mary this time. Do you have anyone with… longer hair?"

"Well, um…" The manager scanned the row of women standing expectantly behind him. Most, if not all, of them had long hair. Mary had been one of few girls with short hair. The manager pointed to a pale lady in a kimono with delicate features like a porcelain doll and glossy hair that was as black as midnight. "Kiki here is free to serve you if you…"

"No."

"Are you sure you won't reconsider, sir? All her clients have only good things to say about… oh, how silly of me, sir! Forgive me. I've forgotten your preference... The woman you want would be Tracy. It's her day off today but I'll see if I can get her to do an extra session for me. She won't be long, sir."

Reno went to his designated room without another word. He was just finishing his second cigarette when 'Tracy' (the women in the inn almost never used their real names) entered his room and began shedding her clothing almost immediately. The manager of the place must have coached her on his preferences before she was sent to him. He did not kiss her at all and when he got his physical release from her, it was from behind. Through it all he could not stop himself from caressing the wispy blonde hair that tumbled down to the middle of her back. It was a poor substitute for the one he really wanted to run his fingers through, but at least it was something tangible and solid that he could touch without fear of rejection; without fear of losing that delicate trust he had taken so long to build.

When he woke up alone on the rumpled bed the next morning, he felt even emptier than before. These sessions always filled him with guilt and self-loathing, but he needed them. He didn't think he could remain sane, living with Cloud all these years, without an outlet such as this. He had long understood that the emptiness inside him could never be filled by all the non-Cloud people on the planet. All they could do was tone down the hunger to a level where it wasn't physically painful.

Before he could allow himself to dwell in self-pity, he got up, dressed efficiently and left the inn.

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**A/N:** I realized that Cloud wasn't getting enough screen time in the last chapter, so I tried to rectify that in this one. Hope I've made the right decision.


	4. Chapter 4

**Snapshots **

**A Final Fantasy VII Fanfiction by ntc **

_Part 4 _

The air was heavy with the stench of blood and burning flesh. The glass cage at the center of the laboratory lay shattered, its previous occupant freed from its confines.

In between bloody coughs, the professor laughed, a gleeful sound that was not entirely sane. "My hypothesis… is correct. Injected…. with enough Jenova… cells… the transformation… can overcome… the… Geo—"

There was a wet sound of a blade sliding into flesh, followed by a choked gurgle. Then silence. The wielder of the blade, trailing glowing Mako behind him, moved on to his next target who was cowering on the floor.

"Kad… aj," gasped Hayakawa, stretching her hand out imploringly towards her executioner. Tears streamed out of her horror-stricken eyes. "Please… stop…"

The green Mako eyes that studied her held no emotion. Not even contempt. "I'm not Kadaj." His voice had also changed; deeper than what she was used to. It finally sank in that the defiant teenager she had become fond of was gone. The Jenova cells that had been forcibly injected into him had shaped him into someone else. Someone more powerful. Someone crueler. "Who… am I?" There was a faint plaintive note in that whisper.

And that was the last thing she heard before a sharp burst of pain blossomed in her chest and her world faded to black.

xXxXxXx

'The 10.57 Midgar train would depart from Platform Two in fifteen minutes. All passengers…'

Marlene tried her best to plaster a cheerful smile on her face, giving no indication of the heavy feeling that was crushing her inside. "Thanks, Cloud… for everything. I've had a wonderful time here."

"What about me, you ingrate?" demanded the surly man hovering behind Cloud.

"Reno." Cloud's exasperated tone held more than a hint of warning. Miraculously, Reno shut his mouth while Cloud reached out to pat the top of her head in an affectionate manner. Marlene longed for the day when she would no longer be a child in Cloud's eyes. "It was a pleasure to have you around. Say hello to your father for me when you see him."

"I will," said Marlene, her voice thick. She then bowed her head and started digging around in her backpack. After a few moments of apparent futile searching, she exclaimed in distress. "Oh no!"

"What's wrong, Marlene?"

"I must've dropped my ticket somewhere! I can't believe I'm so careless…"

Cloud glanced at the large overhanging clock in the station and then back at the ticketing booth located a fair distance away. "Wait here. I'll quickly go buy another one for you."

As planned, she was left standing alone with Reno. When she was sure that Cloud was out of earshot, she whispered, "I won't lose."

It took a moment for Reno to realize that he was being spoken to. He frowned down at her in incomprehension. "Eh?"

"To Zack. To Aeris. To Tifa… Even to you." Marlene locked gazes with the redhead, unwavering determination in her eyes. "Right now, I'm too young to know how to love him. But one day, I'll grow up. I'll grow up… So until then, will you look after Cloud for me?"

Momentarily taken aback by her audacious challenge, Reno spluttered. "You— you little runt! If I do look after him, it wouldn't be because I'm doing you a favour!"

"I know." Marlene smiled brightly at him. "Regardless of your reasons, I still want to thank you. I know you'll never leave him."

After a pregnant pause, Reno asked gruffly, "How did you find out?"

"Tifa told me that Cloud keeps a distance between himself and the people around him, even more so recently. He pushes them away; shuts them out. And if that doesn't work, he withdraws. He runs away." Marlene's smile grew sad. "You're the only person who managed to stay close to him these past few years."

"Heh, maybe it's because I don't give a damn about what he wants. I'm not as considerate of his feelings as his old comrades."

"I guess I should strive to become more like you then."

Reno barked out an amused guffaw at that, which Cloud heard as he approached them. "I'm glad to see that you two are finally learning to get along," commented Cloud, looking quite pleased. He handed the newly bought train ticket to her. "Here you go, Marlene. Try not to lose it this time."

As she pocketed the ticket, her fingers brushed against another rectangular piece of paper of a different texture. A thought occurred to Marlene. "Cloud, do you have your camera with you right now?"

"Sure I do."

"Can I trouble you to take a picture of me with Reno?"

Her request seemed to astound both men. It was granted in the end, though Reno had to be bullied into it. A photograph of her eleven-year-old self grasping the hand of an aggravated and embarrassed-looking redhead in his twenties would sit on Marlene's desk for many years to come.

xXxXxXx

As Cloud watched the train pull out of the station, Reno took the opportunity to observe Cloud without the other man noticing. Cloud had a wistful expression on his face that, for some vague reason, troubled the Turk deeply. It was as if he was getting the premonition that the strong yet fragile blond was about to go somewhere far away. Somewhere he could not follow. Without even realizing it, he had moved to stand closer to Cloud, who cast a questioning look at him.

"You don't have to love me," Reno blurted before he could stop himself. The conversation with Barret's daughter earlier must have affected him more that he thought, for he had never been so open about his feelings before this. When Cloud merely waited for him to continue in the awkward silence that followed, Reno rushed on, "All I ask is that you let me stay with you. Live with you. Cry with you. Laugh with you…" Still failing to elicit a response from the dumbstruck blond, Reno added, "Sleep with—"

Cloud elbowed him so hard that he thought at least two of his right ribs might have cracked.

"H-Hey…!" Reno wheezed, his bruised ribcage making it painful to breathe. "What the hell was that for!"

"Sometimes, Reno, I wonder whether your brain is located below your waist or above it," muttered Cloud, clearly disgusted by his lewd talk. Reno thought Cloud sounded disappointed as well, but he might have imagined it.

"Well," said Reno, shooting his mouth off again. "There are two heads…"

This time, Reno was positive that his ribs had cracked.

xXxXxXx

"Don't be such a crybaby. The pain should have eased off by now," said Cloud unapologetically as he used a Cure Materia to repair the damage he had inflicted on Reno earlier. They had arrived back at his apartment and he had to put up with Reno's exaggerated moans and groans during the whole trip back from the station.

"Crybaby!" Reno yelled, furiously wiping away the tears that had collected in the corners of his eyes. "You sure didn't pull your punches just now! Can't you take a joke like a normal human being?"

"It was all a joke to you?" Cloud tried not to think about why that should bother him so much. He should be feeling relieved, shouldn't he? Cloud finished his casting and hurriedly got up on the pretense of having to put away the Materia. Reno grabbed hold of his wrist before he could move away.

"Not all of it was a joke…" said Reno quietly. "To be honest, none of it was a joke, really."

Cloud said nothing. Suddenly, he lacked the courage to meet Reno's eyes. He attempted to shake Reno's hand off but the stubborn man refused to let go. Cloud briefly considered using more drastic measures to get the Turk to release him, but that would mean having to repeat the whole process of using the Cure Materia again. "Let go of my hand, Reno."

"Damn it, Cloud! Stop pretending that you don't know how I feel!"

"I know how you feel," replied Cloud coolly. Reno's pain was inevitable, because he had stupidly allowed himself to care too much about a dying man. The most merciful thing that Cloud could do for him was to make it as brief as possible. "I just choose not to care." If Reno stopped caring, he would stop hurting as well.

Reno scoffed. "It's not going to work, Cloud. You should have acted like a bastard right from the start if you want to be convincing. You're not getting rid of me so easily."

Frustration twisted Cloud's features. "What are you, a glutton for punishment?"

"I'm a glutton for whatever you'd give me."

"You say the weirdest things." Cloud shook his head, almost pityingly. "I have nothing to give. To you or anyone else."

"You have time," said Reno, his tone deadly serious. "And I want every frigging second of it."

So, Reno already knew about his condition. Somehow, it didn't surprise Cloud as much as it should be. He had always suspected that the redhead was not as dense as he pretended to be most of the time. "You know that I don't have much of it left to give, and you're still asking for it?"

"I don't care how much is left. I just want it all." Cloud was slightly disconcerted by the intensity he saw in Reno's eyes. "Just so you know, I'm not asking either. I'm done being a nice guy."

"Nice?" Cloud let out a nervous chuckle. "Knowing you, Reno, 'nice' is the last word I would…"

Not waiting for him to finish, Reno leaned forward. Whatever words he had in mind melted away in the heat that arose where Reno's soft lips had made contact.

A considerable period of time passed before Cloud could form a coherent thought— a thought that was irrelevant to their current situation but one that, thankfully, didn't require him to acknowledge what had just happened. "I'm thinking of going to the City of the Ancients tomorrow."

"Why tomorrow?" Reno lazily drew back a little so that they could see eye to eye. "It's not even the anniversary of her death yet."

"I only got to know her during the chaotic times of battling Shinra. One of my greatest regrets is that I never got the chance to take a proper photo of her when she was still alive."

"I still don't see the point of you going," Reno grumbled as he combed Cloud's long tresses with his fingers. "She's definitely not in any shape to pose for photographs at the moment."

Cloud took Reno's dark humour in his stride. Getting annoyed or angry just seemed like too much effort. "People deserve to know who the planet's saviour is. I can't show them what she looked like, but I can show them where she had performed her final act of sacrifice."

"If you insist on going, I'm coming with you."

Cloud carefully kept his expression blank. He could not afford to give away any signs of the dismay he felt. "You've never offered to come with me before."

"Didn't you hear me just now? I won't give up any of the time I have with you. You can go anywhere you like, but I won't let you go alone."

"You make it sound like a threat," Cloud noted wryly.

"It's not a threat," said Reno, pulling him into another one of his tight, desperate embraces; one that made him feel suffocated but also invariably warm at the same time. "It's a promise."

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**A/N:** Thanks for reading. Reviews are welcomed.


	5. Chapter 5

**Snapshots**

**A Final Fantasy VII Fanfiction by ntc**

_Part 5_

"What do you mean you don't know where they are?"

Rude and Elena exchanged a sheepish look before redirecting their contrite countenances at the regal man sitting behind the mahogany desk. It was Rude who spoke up. "They haven't been back at the apartment for days and Cloud Strife's motorcycle is nowhere to be seen. It's our belief that they might have left Kalm altogether."

"Someone would know where they might have gone to. Have you tried asking his friends? That girl… what's her name… Tifa? She opens a bar in the same town, doesn't she?"

"She has no reason to tell us anything and has even said as much. However, she was genuinely surprised when we told her that Strife was gone. I don't think even she knows where they are."

"What about his neighbours? The people he works with? Those street orphans he dotes on? Have you…"

"We've questioned them all."

"Of all the times that moron could have chosen to lose contact with us." Rufus scowled over his interlocked fingers at his two tense subordinates. "It has to be now."

"Erm… Are we still talking about Strife or…?"

"I'm talking about your dimwitted, obsessed colleague."

"If you don't mind me asking, sir," said Elena timidly. "Why are we wasting time looking for them when we should be hunting down…?" The hard-edged glint in Rufus's eyes shut her up effectively.

"Hunt down?" Rufus's voice had a mocking lilt to it. "Are you presuming that you can take on our adversary on your own?"

"We don't need Strife's help!" declared Elena, red-faced with injured pride. "So what if he once possessed a SOLDIER's capabilities? Who's to say he hasn't lost them all to the Geostigma by now?"

"I can understand why you don't wish to owe him anything further, Elena, but do try to leave your personal grievances out of the business at hand."

The stab of guilt that Elena felt upon hearing that subtle reminder silenced her abruptly.

Rude came to her defense. "Sir, Elena has a valid point there. Cloud Strife may have defeated him several years ago, but there's no guarantee that he could do it again. Especially now, when his body is rejecting the very Mako that makes him stronger than the rest of us."

"While Strife would prove to be an invaluable ally, I need to get hold of him for other reasons as well. He has to be warned."

"Warned, sir?"

"It is highly likely that Strife's nemesis would seek out and destroy the person responsible for his demise, don't you think?" The cold, dispassionate delivery of those words caused Rude to swallow uneasily. "I know I would. And that is what'll make him the perfect bait if we are to ensnare and eliminate this current threat we're facing."

xXxXxXx

There were whispers in his head, punctuated by flashes of images, of snippets of memories that must have meant something to him. Earlier, he didn't need to think about what he was doing, or why, when he cut down those people in their pristine white lab coats; no longer white when he was done with them. They had hurt him, or had hurt someone who used to be him, so they deserved to die. He derived no satisfaction from their deaths. He only did what was necessary.

He left behind a trail of dead bodies, most of them consisting of uniformed guards who were foolish enough to hinder his escape. They had initially attempted to capture him alive, and had paid dearly for that arrogance. Soon, the gunshots that were aimed at him were no longer meant to disable but to terminate instead. He could not understand why only fear and violence greeted him in this strange and hostile world. He hadn't done anything wrong, had he?

When he was confident that he had escaped his pursuers, when he was no longer driven by his desperation to survive, he began to think. That was when the whispers, the images and the fragmented memories began to flood his mind. The whispers were oily and seductive, telling him of his rightful place far above the jealous, inferior creatures who were determined to end his life. They feared his greater powers, but were at the same time in awe of it, and had dared to harness it for their own selfish purposes. All of them deserved to be wiped out, together with their hateful little planet… He tried to block out those vengeful whispers when he could, only because he felt that he would lose what was left of himself, of his identity, if he listened too closely. The images were harder to block out, each of them more confusing than the last. However, all of them shared something common. Or more specifically, _someone_.

He remembered dying several times before. In different forms. In different places. In different times. But some things had remained the same. The sharp broadsword that pierced him, for one, and the blue-eyed person who held that sword. There was so much rage in those blue eyes. Rage and hurt and torment. He must have done something terrible to evoke those emotions, and it bothered him that he couldn't remember what he had done. If there was anyone who would know the kind of person he used to be, it would be the owner of those blue eyes. It would be his killer.

He could run and hide like a fugitive. He could learn to blend in with the crowd and disappear. His enemies would never find him if he did not want to be found. But such an existence would be meaningless. His quest for his forgotten identity became his new mission. He needed someone to help him make sense of what he was, who he was and who he should be. So far, the only clues he had to go by were his shattered memories and his haggard appearance in the mirror.

For days, he had wandered aimlessly. He ate when he was hungry and slept when exhaustion set in. The rest of his time, he walked. As if pulled by the strings of fate, he found himself striding into an exhibition gallery one day.

xXxXxXx

The curator of the gallery was locking the glass doors at the entrance when he noticed the lone man standing at the end of one of the corridors. The visitor appeared to be wholly captivated by the picture on display before him, not even turning his head when the curator approached him.

"I'm sorry, sir, but we're closed for the day." When there was no response from the man, the curator cleared his throat and spoke more loudly. "Why don't you come again tomorrow? We open at—"

"Who took this picture?" interrupted the man, still not looking away from the object that had captured his attention.

"Well… All the photos that you see here are the works of the same man…"

"Name!" The curator jumped slightly at the barked command. "Tell me the name of this photographer!"

"Eh… um…" The curator was about to chew out the stranger for his rudeness but thought better of it when he took note of how tall and well-muscled the other man was. And was that a sword hilt sticking out from the folds of his black cape? The curator began to wish that he had not granted the security guard his afternoon off. "The photographer's name is Cloud Strife. Shouldn't you know that already before you visit this gallery? Isn't that why you've come?"

His question was completely ignored. Not surprisingly; the rude man. "Cloud… Strife…?" The curator could tell that the name was unfamiliar to the tall stranger, but what was odd was that the stranger seemed to be immensely frustrated by the fact that the name was unfamiliar to him. "Cloud Strife… Cloud…"

Seeing that the stranger's intimidating aura was diminished somewhat by his confusion, the curator grew bold enough to put forward his request. "I really have to ask you to leave now, sir. This gallery closes at five o-clock…" The curator's gaze flitted towards the picture that was the cause of his problem and what he saw caused his eyebrows to climb towards his hairline. "It can't be…" A shiver coursed through the curator as he realized the danger the man before him represented. "You're…"

"I'm…?" Why did the man choose now to look at him directly? Those eyes… They seemed capable of seeing through any of the lies that he was planning to use on the man.

"Uh… No, eh, um… I-I just thought you look a lot like the m-man in the picture, that's all. But y-you couldn't possibly be… I mean, the G-General… he's dead already… killed by… Well, I just thought y-you look a lot like him, that's all." Cold sweat rolled off his forehead and into his eyes and the curator blinked it away anxiously, too terrified to even raise a hand to wipe it away.

"You're scared." The luminous eyes that studied him rooted him to the spot. A gut feeling told him that any attempt to flee would be at best futile and at worst fatal. The curator suddenly felt like a mouse about to be devoured by a hungry snake. "Why are you scared?"

"Huh… I-I'm not…"

"I despise liars."

A trickle of urine ran down the curator's pant leg. He was openly sobbing now.

"You have nothing to fear from me." Disgusted by the curator's open display of fear, the stranger turned his head away to face the picture on the wall again. "All I want is some answers. You will provide me with those answers, won't you?"

Even the two Shinra Turks who came to interrogate him a few days ago did not terrify him so. At that time, the curator had managed to keep his promise to Cloud not to reveal his whereabouts to anyone who came searching for him. The curator was not so confident that he could keep that promise this time.

xXxXxXx

"The handcuffs are beginning to chafe, Reno." With his cheek pressed against the space between Reno's shoulder blades, Cloud watched the scenery zip past him as the motorcycle they were sitting on streaked across the dry plains. When no reply was forthcoming from the unusually quiet redhead in front of him, Cloud spoke again. "Reno?"

"Shut up. I'm still too angry to talk to you now." Due to their proximity, Cloud could sense Reno trembling with barely suppressed emotion.

Cloud sighed as he clasped his hands to reduce the drag of the metal cuffs on his wrists. Given that his arms had to encircle Reno's waist before his hands could be brought together, he was grateful for Reno's trim waistline. "You do realize that what you're doing now is almost criminal, don't you?" Fuming silence. "We certainly drew a lot of weird looks from the folk back in that town, thanks to you."

"That's what you get for that stunt you tried to pull this morning," snarled Reno, his voice tight with fury. "That's what you get for trying to run away…"

"You said I could go anywhere I like…"

"… without me!" finished Reno heatedly. Ah, now that's the whole crux of the matter, isn't it? "Where would you be now if I hadn't taken the precaution to equip myself with a Reflect Materia?"

"I admit it was sneaky of me to try a sleep spell on you…"

"Try that one more time, and I will break your legs."

"Um…" Cloud could tell that Reno was not making an empty threat. The Turk sure had a psychotic way of showing his affections. Maybe all the Turks were like that. "Don't you think that's a rather extreme punishment for someone who just wants to grant you a good night's sleep?"

"Good night's sleep my ass!"

"You're right. You are still too angry to talk to me right now." Cloud tried to settle himself in a more comfortable position. He was not used to being a passenger, as well as a prisoner, on his own motorbike. "Where are we going?"

"As far as I'm concerned, our destination hasn't changed." Reno's voice took on a dangerous note. "Don't tell me… All your previous talk about wanting to go to the Forgotten City was only meant to mislead me." The period of silence that followed was incriminating enough. "You sneaky bastard!"

"No, I really do want to visit the City of the Ancients. Just, maybe, not immediately… so that you wouldn't find me."

"You're bringing the concept of 'anti-social' to a whole new level, you know that?" growled Reno irritably. "What is _wrong_ with you? Why are you treating me like some gum on your shoe that you couldn't wait to scrape off?"

Cloud had no answer to that. He knew he would hurt Reno, and continue to hurt the man, no matter what he did. He wanted to spare Reno some of that, but apparently his efforts weren't appreciated in the least. He let his mind wander and something about their current situation brought back memories that made him chuckle.

"What's so funny?" Reno snapped, indignant.

"It's just… I'm getting a sense of déjà vu here. Aren't you?"

Cloud recalled the first time he met Reno; the time when circumstances had forced him to become well acquainted with the brash and stubborn redhead. It was during a time when his strength and agility had not yet been enhanced by Hojo's experiments; when he had been nothing more than a tool to be used against Zack. He was Zack's biggest weakness; a weakness that was most easily exploited. Reno was his kidnapper then, and the two of them had unwittingly forged a bond while journeying to the rendezvous with his other teammates.

"Heh… the difference now is that there's no one coming to rescue you this time."

"That, and the fact that I can now kick your butt ten times over without breaking a sweat." Reno was wrong about one detail. Zack hadn't 'rescued' him that time. Reno had let him go. The redhead was either too embarrassed to admit it or he had genuinely forgotten. Somehow, Cloud doubted that he had forgotten.

"Those are mighty big words coming from you, Shorty."

It had been a long time since Reno had last used that nickname on him. During his days as Reno's captive, it was nigh impossible to get Reno to call him by his real name. That man had no shortage of derogatory terms to be used on anyone who wasn't a fellow Turk. "You know I can easily free myself should I choose to do so. These handcuffs can't hold me."

"They're not what's holding you here. I am." The redhead sounded… smug. There was no other way to describe it. "Trying to free yourself now would mean having to injure me to do it. And you can't, can you?"

Cloud was glad that, due to the way their bodies were positioned, Reno wouldn't be able to witness the flush that was creeping up to his face. "Don't tempt me."

"Ooh… I'm quaking in my boots."

"I hate you."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N:** Hmm. I should really rename this fic 'The one-shot that had blown out of proportion'. Gaah, when is this story going to end? I wish to take this opportunity to thank my wonderful reviewers (yes, all two of you). Till next time then.


	6. Chapter 6

**Snapshots**

**A Final Fantasy VII Fanfiction by ntc**

_Part 6_

Nightfall had descended by the time Reno decided to make a break in their journey. He brought the Fenrir to a complete halt near what looked to be a dry patch of springy grass that would be ideal as a campsite. The sounds of a flowing stream also alerted him to a convenient source of water nearby. For the past hour, the blond sitting behind him had been quiet and leaning his full weight against his back, leading him to the conclusion that Cloud had fallen asleep. A wry smile curled Reno's lips. He had often dreamed of the day when he could remain by the blond's side while he slept, but he had never envisioned it to be under such circumstances.

Reno fished out a small key from his trouser pocket and used it to unlock the handcuffs that held Cloud's hands together. In an effort to quell any feelings of guilt for his own actions, Reno tried not to pay too much attention to the red and raw lines marked around Cloud's wrists where the cuffs had dug in too deeply. He wouldn't have resorted to this if the blond fighter hadn't been so damned stubborn. Maybe he should consider getting one of those padded handcuffs he once saw at… Reno shook his head vigorously to disrupt that particular train of thought. That was one big distraction he really could do without right now.

He was pulled out of his thoughts when he felt Cloud sliding off the motorcycle as soon as the cuffs came off. Reno twisted sharply to catch the falling blond, grunting at the pull of muscles in his back. "Cloud? Yo, wake up. Your head is going to have an extremely close encounter with the ground soon if you don't…" Reno's eyes widened when he finally realized that Cloud wasn't asleep. He was unconscious. Or worse, maybe even…

_No!_ In a blur of motion, Reno leapt off the bike and carefully lowered Cloud's unresponsive body on to the ground. "Wake up. Wake up. Don't you die on me now… Don't you dare!" Reno noticed his hands were shaking again and he cursed himself for losing his calm so easily. He should be used to this by now. _Just go through the motions. It's nothing you haven't done a dozen times before. Feel the pulse, there, right at the spot adjacent to his Adam's apple. And breathing; his chest is rising and falling, is it not? Not sure? Bring your cheek close to his nostrils. Yes, that's definitely breath you're sensing there. Soft, so soft, a tiny tickle of airflow. He's breathing… He's breathing…_

A sob of relief escaped Reno. Why does he still feel this way every time this happened? So many times… And yet every time felt just like the first time. Always. He had had nightmares in which he waited and wished for Cloud to wake up from another one of his episodes of Geostigma-induced coma, only to discover later that the blond was already dead. A cold corpse. Breathless. Lifeless.

"I couldn't do anything for you…" Reno did not bother to hide the tremor in his voice. Cloud couldn't hear him anyway. "I tried… I tried… but I'm too stupid… Too stupid to be of any help. Rufus was right. What was I thinking? I should've spent all that time doing something much more worthwhile. I should've spent all that time with you instead…" His lips trembled as he pressed them against Cloud's forehead, almost reverently. "Instead of doing the smart thing, instead of making the most of the time we have left, I have to go attempt the impossible. I was greedy. I wanted more time with you. I wanted… Gods, I wanted…"

Reno clung onto Cloud as if he was a lifeline, feeling as if he would shatter to a million pieces if he let go.

xXxXxXx

Someone was sobbing. Someone was howling. Someone was grieving.

When Cloud came to, the first thing he did was listen out for that sad voice. When only sounds of crackling timber greeted him, he began to wonder if he had imagined it all, or whether all he had heard were merely figments of a troubled dream.

There was a warm pressure on his hand and Cloud craned his neck to find Reno clutching his right hand. The redhead appeared to be sound asleep; his lanky body curled up right alongside his. Cloud carefully disentangled his fingers from Reno's and shifted the blanket so that the thick material now covered the slumbering Turk. As he was about to get up, Reno's eyes suddenly flew open, the transition from deep sleep to full wakefulness almost instantaneous.

"Uh, hey, sorry to wake you up." When Reno failed to respond, Cloud assumed that the redhead was still angry with him. He walked to the duffel bags leaning against the motorcycle and began rummaging for provisions. All the while, he could feel the heat of Reno's gaze on his back. "You hungry? I could open an extra can of beans for you."

Still no reply. It seemed that Reno was determined to sulk for a while. Cloud shrugged and proceeded to peel off the top of a can with a can opener. As he was about to dig in, the can was swiftly snatched from his grasp by the seething Turk who had moved to sit down beside him. Cloud merely sighed and set to work on another can.

After a while, Reno grumbled, "I like my beans hot. Why didn't you warm it up by the fire?"

"Well, I like my beans cold," retorted Cloud.

They ate in silence after that. But it was a somewhat more comfortable silence.

The silence was broken when both of them had decided to retire for the night and Reno insisted on cuffing himself to him. "You can't be serious," protested Cloud as cold steel closed around one of his wrists.

Reno secured the cuff at the other end of the chain around his own right wrist. "I've hidden the key, so don't you start getting any ideas."

"You're the one with the ideas here. Don't you think you're being a tad paranoid?"

"Paranoid? Like when I chose to shield myself with a Reflect Materia the other night?"

Cloud wisely decided not to argue any further and settled down to sleep. As he preferred to sleep on his side, it was inevitable that he ended up in a position where he had to come face to face with Reno. He promptly closed his eyes to block out Reno's piercing gaze. The Turk was acting more strangely than normal tonight for some reason.

"How do you do it, Cloud?"

The anguish in Reno's words was so tangible that Cloud was forced to open his eyes and confront the other man's pain. "Do what?"

"Pretend that everything is alright, when it's clearly not. Pretend that you're not dying, when you clearly are."

So that was the reason. "Strictly speaking, we're all dying, Reno."

There was a flash of irritation in Reno's eyes. The redhead was obviously in no mood for glib remarks. "I'm being serious here."

"What do you want me to say?" Now it was Cloud's turn to feel irritated. Why was Reno looking at him like that? Hadn't he done all he could to push the redhead away? Was it his fault that Reno was too stubborn to budge? Cloud had learnt to accept his imminent death. He had been near death too many times in the past to be afraid of it. To him, death was a long awaited opportunity for him to be reunited with beloved friends and family who had been torn away from him in bloody violence. The Lifestream had beckoned to him several times already, always in surreal visions of a field of flowers and _her_. He didn't want to think about the people whom he would be leaving behind after his death. It was less difficult that way; but the annoying Turk just wouldn't let him forget, let him ignore… "What do you want from me, Reno? Do you want me to break down and cry my eyes out? Do you want me to… what… act more miserable than I already am? What do you want?"

"I want you to care!" Reno hollered, his face suddenly dark with tightly controlled anger. Cloud instinctively moved away from the redhead, but the handcuffs could only allow so much separation. "I want you to give a damn that you're dying! I want you to fight; to fight for your life instead of this infuriating, sickening, quiet acceptance!"

"Why are you getting so worked up over this? You know as well as I do that Geostigma isn't some beast that can be killed with sword or magic. No one can fight it."

"What pisses me off is that you're not doing anything to fight it at all! You just don't care whether you live or die!"

It was impossible to ignore the truth in those words. No point in denying it too. "So?"

"I care! Why is it that I can't make you care?"

"You can't. Just learn to accept it." Cloud turned his back on Reno but that action only succeeded in pulling them closer together. Damned cuffs. Before he could readjust his position, Reno's other arm, the one that wasn't chained to his, snaked around his waist and drew him even closer. His breath caught in his throat when he felt Reno nuzzling against the nape of his neck.

"What can I do to make you care, Cloud?" Reno breathed, his hands gradually becoming bolder in their touches.

It took all his willpower to suppress the shiver traveling down his spine. Reno had never attempted… had never dared… But then again, this was the first time he had pushed the redhead so hard. "Well, groping isn't it, in case you're wondering." His attempt at levity was completely ignored, seeing how Reno did not pause in his movements. His heartbeat quickened in spite of himself. "What are you trying to do, Reno?"

"Isn't it bloody obvious? I'm teaching you what it means to be alive. You can thank me later."

"Would you stop thinking with your gonads for one second!" yelled Cloud exasperatedly, only to flinch when he felt something warm and wet brush against his earlobe. Could that possibly be the tongue? Best not to think about these things. He really should do something before Reno robbed him of his ability to think straight. "I suggest that you cease what you're doing before I start breaking a few bones."

Paying no heed to his warning, Reno started to tug on the zipper of his jacket. "I'd like to see you try—"

The birds in the nearby woods took flight as Reno's earsplitting shriek of agony rang out.

xXxXxXx

"You broke my bloody finger!"

"Dislocate, Reno, dislocate. And it's just the pinky on your left hand. Don't worry, I can fix it easily if you would just…"

Reno scooted further away, or attempted to, at least. They were still linked by the handcuffs after all. "Keep your hands off me, you lunatic."

Cloud gave him an incredulous stare. "Coming from you, that's really rich."

Reno pointedly ignored the remark; the reminder that he had nearly lost control a short while ago. He took a deep breath and yanked his finger back in position, a hiss of pain escaping through gritted teeth. He had participated in enough bar brawls to know how to handle minor injuries like this.

"Here, let me ease the pain a little."

He did not pull away this time when Cloud reached out to weave the healing magic of a Cure Materia around his hand. As Reno silently watched the blond at work, it occurred to him that Cloud's concern was genuine. Cloud may not care about what would happen to himself, but he did care, in his own way, about the people around him. Even Cloud's self-imposed isolation was part of his screwed up way of showing that he cared. And therein Reno found the solution to his problem.

"Is there really nothing that ties you to the living world?" Reno asked, his expression solemn. "Nothing that makes you want to live longer?"

"Are we back to this topic again?" Cloud's eyebrows drew together in a frown. "Give it a rest, Reno. I'm not in the mood to discuss it right now."

"What if I say that I will live for only as long as you're alive?"

Confusion flitted across Cloud's face. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that the day you die is the day I die, Cloud." It was all so simple, really. There was no need to torment himself with thoughts of a life without Cloud. All he had to do was ensure that there _wasn't_ a life without Cloud. "I'm saying that the day you return to the Lifestream is the day I bring a gun to my head and blow my brains out. I will follow you in death if I have to."

"You…" If Cloud was moved by his little speech, he gave absolutely no indication of it. In fact, the blond looked more pissed off than anything else. "Why the hell would you do something so utterly dumb and insane? Spare me the nauseating melodrama already."

Those words would have stung if Reno hadn't figured out what Cloud was trying to do. "I'm merely informing you of what will happen." Reno smirked. "No offence, but I don't think the invincible Cloud Strife can do anything to stop me when the time comes."

"I can always put you in a straitjacket and haul you to an asylum beforehand. Those places take in suicidal idiots all the time."

"I'm not suicidal." Reno did not deny the 'idiot' part of Cloud's accusation. Only an idiot would fall so violently in love with the maddening man before him. "I just thought you might want a bit of company when you go. You can act all aloof and everything, but I know you hate to be alone, Cloud. You're just too stubborn to admit it to yourself."

"Don't presume you know what I want!" Cloud's blue eyes blazed with an anger that served only to mask the hidden distress underneath. "Don't presume you know me, you…!"

It was at this point that Reno decided he wasn't terribly interested in what Cloud had to say, especially when the blond was in such a high-level repelling mode. Bracing himself for another rib-cracking elbow jab, he sealed Cloud's mouth in the only way he knew how, and in the only way he really wanted. The elbow jab never came. Reno finally detached himself from Cloud, more out of curiosity and surprise than any true desire to do so.

Far from becoming shocked and flustered, Cloud's entire demeanor had taken on an eerie calm. "Promise me one thing, Reno." There was a look of sad resignation in the blond's eyes. "Promise me that as long as there's the faintest possibility that I'm still alive, you won't seek to end your own life."

"Idiot." Like a child testing the limits of what he was and wasn't allowed to do, Reno slowly began to lean towards Cloud again. "I want to live as much as the next guy. Why should I kill myself if you're still alive?"

Cloud did not shift backwards, and Reno took it as a sign of encouragement. "So, it's a promise then?"

Their faces were only centimeters apart. So close that they could feel the warmth of each other's breath on their cheeks. "Hell, no."

He didn't know how Cloud did it. One second they were about to have, in Reno's opinion, some serious fun, and the next second found him fighting for air in a choking headlock. "May I ask why not?" demanded Cloud, his reasonable tone of voice in sharp contrast to his extreme actions.

"Can't… breathe…" Reno gasped out. The crazy blond didn't know his strength sometimes.

The pressure eased slightly but Cloud maintained his firm chokehold. "Why, Reno?" he asked again.

After an exaggerated fit of coughing and wheezing, Reno managed to growl out, "I don't see why I should promise you anything when I get nothing in return."

"You're… bargaining with me?" said Cloud in disbelief. "When all I'm trying to do is to stop you from doing something irreversible and stupid?"

Reno grinned shamelessly. "A promise for a promise. It's only fair."

"I know I'm going to regret asking you this but…" Cloud sighed in defeat. "What is this promise that you want from me?"

Dizzy from the countless possibilities, Reno closed his eyes. His hands moved to tentatively caress the arms that were wrapped around his neck. "I want…"

xXxXxXx

"Damn you, you jerk! You fiend! You scheming bastard!" Reno kicked at the ground in frustration, only to succeed in scuffing his shoe and stirring up a cloud of dirt. He glared once more at the impassable Sleeping Forest before him, its secret paths currently closed to him. Yeah, he needed a Lunar Harp. He knew that now. Cloud had conveniently forgotten to mention that fact before disappearing into the forest on his own.

_Damn it!_ He should never have unlocked those handcuffs, no matter how blatantly the village people stared. When he found out that it would take a few days for them to excavate another harp (Don't these people have spare ones lying around? Damn them!), he nearly lost whatever tenuous hold on sanity he had. His first reaction was to wave his electromag rod around like a mad man while threatening to use it as a torture device in highly creative ways. It earned him an extra burst of speed and enthusiasm in their excavation efforts but little else. His second reaction was to drown his frustration in the blank haze of inebriation, heedless of the horrid taste of the village's locally brewed ale. That earned him a hangover that basically incapacitated him for the better part of a day. His third reaction was to exercise the few brain cells he hadn't killed with alcohol poisoning to come up with a plan to make sure Cloud didn't escape him again.

Which was why he was currently camping out on the main path leading to the forest, living on baked beans and stale bread. He may not be able to follow Cloud into the forest for the time being, but he'd make sure that the devious blond wouldn't be able to leave without confronting him first. Now he understood why Cloud was so insistent on him making that promise a few days ago. By disappearing completely, Cloud ensured that Reno would have no way of knowing for certain if he was dead or alive, thereby forcing the Turk to stay alive indefinitely if he was to keep his promise.

No matter; Cloud had yet to fulfill his side of the agreement too. That meant Reno had no obligation to keep his promise. He took a bite of dry bread and washed it down with a mouthful of lukewarm water. Something alcoholic would have been nicer, but he didn't want to risk missing Cloud on his way out of the forest. How long was that damned blond planning to stay in there anyway? He fervently hoped that Cloud had not left the Forgotten City by some secret back passage he wasn't aware of.

_First things first._ He needed to get hold of a Lunar Harp badly. Maybe he should make another quick trip back to the village to see if the excavators had had any luck so far.

xXxXxXx

Cloud spent most of his first day in the City of the Ancients keeping true to his original intention, using up several rolls of film to capture images of the ethereal and crystalline city around him. Like his previous visits, he had spent the night sleeping in one of the uninhabited houses at the outskirts of the city before making his way north. Like his previous visits, he began to lose his nerve as he passed by the mirror-like pool where Aeris's water burial had taken place. To recollect himself, he would offer a small prayer to the flower girl who had touched his life so profoundly in the short time he had known her. It was always difficult for him to think about Aeris without being wracked by guilt. Cloud could not forget the time when he, in the grip of Sephiroth's formidable will, had nearly cut her down with his own sword. However, in this quiet, sacred place, he could dare to hope that he had been forgiven. She had died with such a peaceful smile on her face…

He reached the shrine where he remembered holding her rapidly cooling body for the last time. The blood that had once stained the glass platform was gone. His vision blurred and when he wiped the moisture away, he found himself standing in an expansive field of yellow flowers and green grass. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a brown ponytail and the hem of a pink dress. Though he could feel her standing behind him, he would not turn around for fear of shattering the illusion.

"I am glad that you've come, Cloud." Aeris's voice had not changed over the years, its underlying tone of playfulness still present. "Though you can reach me anywhere, your thoughts are louder when you're here."

"Aeris…" Cloud managed before the lump in his throat stole away his power of speech.

"I miss you," said Aeris, echoing his own thoughts. "But I don't miss you enough to bring you across to where I am now. It would be terribly selfish of me to do so, especially when there are so many people waiting for your return." Undaunted by his silence, Aeris continued talking. "Why are you here, Cloud? Something is troubling you."

Cloud allowed his eyes to drift shut as her warm, soothing presence enveloped him. For a moment, Cloud was reminded of the embrace he used to receive from his mother when she was still alive, and the unconditional, maternal love that came with it. "I just want to get away for a while, I guess."

"Ah, but what are you getting away from?" Cloud heard the giggle he remembered so well. "Or should I say who?"

"Reno has nothing to do with…!" Cloud clammed up immediately when he realized that he had accidentally revealed too much.

"Forgive me for being blunt, but I believe Reno has a lot to do with why you're here now. And why you're currently so afraid and miserable."

"I'm terrified, Aeris." Cloud wanted to laugh when he recalled how confident Tifa was when she boasted of his courage. He had never been a courageous person. All that he had ever done in the past that could be misconstrued as courage were merely acts of revenge spurred by blind rage and anguish. "I've never asked for him to tie his life so closely with mine. I'm dying soon and I don't want his death to follow mine. I don't want that responsibility."

"I believe you're running away from him for other reasons, Cloud, but we can discuss your emotions another time." He could hear the smile in her voice. "From what I can see, if we can just get rid of the source of all your problems, everything will turn out fine."

"Source?"

"Geostigma. If you're cured of the Geostigma, you would have no reason to be afraid of maintaining your bonds with the people around you. You would not have to fear hurting them with your early death."

For some reason, the prospect of surviving the Geostigma was even more alarming than the prospect of dying from it. He had never dared to hope; had not even wanted to hope… until recently. "Is that even possible?"

"It is now." When Cloud opened his eyes, he could see Aeris standing in front of him, a gentle smile gracing her face. "Through your strong link with the Planet, the Lifestream can study the alien infection within you and develop a means to combat it. If it succeeds, it would mean a cure for not only you but also everyone who is afflicted with the Geostigma. But I have to warn you, Cloud, that being cured of the Geostigma may mean having to lose all the physical enhancements that made you such a capable SOLDIER."

"I'm a photographer now. I don't need my fighting skills anymore." Ever since Sephiroth's death, he had no further need for his honed abilities to kill. "Tell me what I have to do."

Aeris extended a hand towards him in invitation. "Hold onto my hand, Cloud."

Without any hesitation, he reached out. The field of flowers faded away, to be replaced by an ocean of pure white light.

xXxXxXx

"You what!?" Reno's eyes gleamed with murderous intent as he loomed over the trembling digger before him.

"I had no choice! He threatened me, sir! I had to hand over the harp!"

Reno whipped out his electromag rod and brandished it ominously. "Have you forgotten what I said about electrocuting your unmentionables if you don't give me the first harp you dig up?"

"But he threatened to cut them off, sir!"

"Let me assure you that having them fried while still attached is a great deal more excruciating!" roared Reno. He was about to make good his threat when a young girl, roughly the same age as Barret's brat, boldly stepped in front of the cowering man and blocked his way.

"Please, mister, my dad is as much a victim as you! Harming him would do nothing to bring you closer to acquiring that harp. You should seek the man who had taken it from us instead."

What the girl said was entirely logical, of course, but Reno's pride would not allow him to forgive the offence so easily. "Why should I spare this cretin's life? Your father knew I've been waiting for days for that harp; and yet he still chose to surrender it to the next person who happened to pass by and demand for it! I've already made it abundantly clear to him what the consequences would be. What excuse can you possibly give me that justifies his cowardly actions?"

"The man who threatened my dad was **here**, mister, whereas you weren't," said the girl. "And that made all the difference."

Reno could not have come up with a better excuse himself. Despite his simmering anger, Reno could feel the corners of his mouth tugging upwards in a smile. "Well said, little brat."

"I'm not 'little brat'!" cried the girl indignantly. "My name is—"

"Not interested, brat. Just tell me where that man went and I'll leave you two alone. What does this robber look like?"

The girl blew out her cheeks in a child-like show of displeasure. "He's as tall as you, mister, maybe even taller. His hair is grey-white in colour, sort of like silver, and is as long as a woman's. And… uh… and…"

Reno was not sure what expression he was wearing at that moment, but whatever it was had caused the girl to falter and shrink away from him. _It can't be him_, he thought, as a whirlwind of frantic thoughts overwhelmed him. _It can't be! _"Where did he go?" he asked in a hoarse voice.

"I don't know…" The girl was now hiding behind her father's larger build. "But if he took the harp, there's only one place he would be going to…"

Without another word, Reno leapt onto the Fenrir and sped off in the direction from which he came. His mind barely registered the screaming people who scrambled out of his path as he rode the motorcycle recklessly through the village. _Why did he come here? Why now? He couldn't be looking for… He couldn't be…_ Regardless of why and how that deadly spawn of Jenova ended up in the vicinity, Reno knew what he had to do. He could not allow those two to meet. He could not.

With wind whipping past his face, Reno cast his eyes about for the man he thought he was looking for. _Calm down. It could've been some punk with dyed hair who took that harp. Hell, from that scant description you got from the girl, it could even be an old geezer who couldn't afford a pair of scissors. Stop assuming the worst. _Despite his own mental efforts to calm himself down, Reno remained high-strung. He could not convince himself that he was mistaken. He could not allow himself that degree of hope and optimism.

And what do you plan to do if it really turns out to be him? Reno knew his own limitations when it came to combat. Given enough leveled Materia and explosive devices (which he didn't carry with him this time round, dammit), he might be able to hold his own for a short while against a seasoned SOLDIER. His previous fights with Zack had shown him that. However, he still lost in the end even though Zack had been holding back.

Sephiroth would not be holding back.

His hands that were gripping the throttle turned clammy with sweat. Reno did not fear death. That was one of the qualities they looked out for when he was recruited as a Turk. What he feared was a pointless death. If he died, he wanted to die knowing that his death had achieved something. In this case, he would willingly fling himself into the deepest pits of hell if it meant he could drag Sephiroth along with him. He would willingly die if it meant that Cloud would be safe.

With that determination in mind, Reno caught sight of a cloaked figure walking on the road ahead of him. The harp that was being carried in one hand identified the figure as the person he was after. Perhaps sensing his hostile intentions, the figure suddenly spun around to face him. Eyes similar to Cloud's but of a different colour bored into his like augers. Reno had only a split second to react and jump off the Fenrir before it was cleaved in two by a powerful swipe of a long sword.

xXxXxXx

Cloud nearly stumbled as he was being gently guided by Aeris to the edge of a pool of crystal clear water.

Aeris looked at him worriedly. "What's wrong?"

Cloud shook his head and tried to conceal his feeling of unease with a forced smile. "It's… nothing. I'm all right."

Aeris did not appear convinced but she let it pass. She knelt down and immersed one hand in the pool. What she sensed in its waters caused her to smile in delight. "I believe it will work, Cloud. The Lifestream has lent its power and this water that you find here can now be used to cleanse the Geostigma." She cupped a handful of the pool water and turned towards him. "You don't have to suffer anymore, Cloud. Hold out your left arm."

Cloud nodded and began removing the bandages wrapped around his left arm. As his fingers brushed against the blackened flesh, his arm suddenly flared up in a pain so intense that he nearly blacked out. The unexplainable feeling of unease he felt earlier returned with a vengeance. The feeling was a disturbingly familiar one; and it finally occurred to Cloud when he had felt it was only one person on the Planet who could cause the Jenova cells inside him to resonate to such a fevered pitch. Trembling from the pain and the strong emotions that gripped him, Cloud slowly stood up on shaky legs and backed away from the pool.

"Cloud?"

"I'm sorry, but I don't think I can do this now." He could not afford to lose his strength at a time like this. Not when he knew, with a frightening certainty, that Sephiroth was somehow still alive. "I have to go."

"But if we don't treat your Geostigma now…"

"Please, Aeris."

The Ancient saw the unwavering resolution in his eyes and reluctantly relented. "I can't change your mind, can I? I didn't want to say anything earlier because I was afraid this would happen. Forgive me, Cloud."

Cloud gave her a confused look. "What do I need to forgive you for?"

Aeris bowed her head in shame. "I have kept silent because… if you go out now, you could die, and Reno's sacrifice would have been for naught."

"Sacrifice? What…?" The implications of her words eventually hit him. Cloud whirled and dashed out of the shrine without a backward glance.

"Forgive me," whispered Aeris as her astral form vanished in white light.

xXxXxXx

The harp was damaged beyond repair, reduced to a pile of splintered wood and snapped strings. He shifted his rage-filled gaze to the crazed red-haired man responsible for destroying the instrument he needed to awaken the Sleeping Forest and reach his destination.

It had been a short, vicious battle. Out of the blue, the other man had charged at him with a concentrated fury, swinging his electricity-generating rod wildly like a man possessed. He could not fathom the reason for such antagonism from someone he hardly even knew. Despite his perplexity and surprise, he could still focus on his sword work, dealing out thrusts and strokes in rapid succession until his opponent lay immobile and bleeding on the ground. The battle had not been without cost to himself, seeing how his assailant had managed to break the Lunar Harp he had acquired with well-aimed shots fired from a pistol.

"Who are you?" he demanded of the wounded man on the ground who was struggling, and failing, to get up. Some of those cuts were quite deep as he had been too irritated by the loss of the harp to show any mercy. However, he had refrained from landing a fatal blow so that he could get some answers.

A hand was twitching towards the rod that lay just out of reach. He negligently kicked the weapon away, earning himself a baleful glare from the other man. Grabbing a handful of red hair, he pulled his attacker's head backwards until it bent at a painful angle. He took a moment to note that the man's eyes were not blue. "Why did you attack me?"

The man spat in his face. "Because you're a bastard who deserves it."

Even though it was refreshing to deal with open defiance instead of stark terror for a change, his patience was wearing thin. He roughly slammed the man's face against the ground and pulled the head back up. Crimson blood now dripped from a broken nose.

"It seems to me that you're deliberately trying to stop me from going to the City of the Ancients." His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "You wouldn't happen to know someone by the name of Cloud Strife, would you?"

A sharp intake of breath already gave him his answer, even as the redhead's bloodied mouth spouted his lies. "I don't know anybody by that name."

It would appear that no truthful answers would be forthcoming from his attacker unless he resorted to more brutal methods. He had found such acts repulsive but undeniably effective. He had no choice.

His first stab into the back of a thigh brought on a muffled grunt of pain. The redhead only started screaming in earnest when he twisted the sword. "Spare yourself further agony and just tell me what I want to know. I'll even let you live."

To his frustration, his offer of leniency only seemed to ignite his attacker's stubbornness. All he could elicit from the other man was a string of creative profanities. He was mildly impressed when this went on for a good fifteen minutes without any repetition. When it became obvious to him that the redhead would not break, he pulled the sword out and stepped away. He could respect loyalty, even in one who was weaker than him. "What is Cloud Strife to you? Why are you willing to go to such lengths to keep me away from him?"

"Screw… you."

"I have no intention of harming him, if that is what you're worried about," he said, swinging his sword sharply to flick away the blood on the blade.

"As if I'll believe you… Asshole!"

Shaking his head in exasperation, he began to walk away. He had been sidetracked long enough by this whole unpleasant incident. He would have to find a way to get another harp. To his bewilderment, the redhead's left hand shot out to seize hold of the heel of his boot, halting his movements.

"Where… do you think you're going? Do you think you can… just walk away like this?"

The redhead must have been delirious from pain and blood loss, to even attempt something as monumentally foolish as this. "Don't force me to kill you, worm."

"Do you think…" Eyes glazed and darkening, the other man did not appear to have heard him. "… that you can just come and take… what I've spent years working so hard to attain?"

_Years?_ What the hell was the man talking about? Was he referring to the Lunar Harp? But the redhead himself had destroyed the harp without any sign of regret. "This is my last warning. Remove your hand before I remove it for you."

When the grip on his boot only tightened in response, he let out a hiss of annoyance and pivoted on his heel, his sword poised high above his head and ready to strike. At that precise moment, something heavy cannoned into him from his blind spot, knocking him over.

xXxXxXx

After seeing the state Reno was in, Cloud wanted more than anything else to continue pounding the monster responsible, to take full advantage of the initiative and element of surprise. In the end, his concern for the injured Turk overruled his bloodthirsty fury. He used those precious seconds when Sephiroth was momentarily stunned to gather Reno up and move back while simultaneously casting the strongest healing spells he had. He focused on sealing the larger wounds first to prevent further loss of blood.

"Cloud…?" croaked Reno.

Cloud almost wept with relief, but he could not afford to let his guard down. Sephiroth was already standing up and staring at him intently. Cloud glared back into those aquamarine eyes unflinchingly, at the same time using all his reserves to keep the redhead in his arms alive.

"You idiot! What are you doing here?" Reno snapped, pushing him away feebly. "If you plan on running away anyway, why bother coming back? You should've stayed inside the forest!"

"I should be asking you the same question." Cloud could not help smiling a little. An irate Reno was a Reno who wouldn't be dying anytime soon. "Isn't it the specialty of Turks to run away and hide when defeat is imminent?"

"The correct term for it is 'tactical retreat', you jerk. And stop changing the subject!"

Cloud would have broadened his smile if his mind wasn't too busy working out a plan to deal with the threat before him. It was too late to berate himself for not bringing along the Ultima Weapon or any of his attack Materias with him when he left Kalm. He hadn't foreseen the possibility of the resurrection of his old foe, though he wondered why he hadn't. It wasn't as if this was the first time Sephiroth had reappeared in front of him when he should have been dead.

_Fight or flight?_ It would be madness to take on Sephiroth unarmed. Even as Cloud thought this, he made a mental note of the location where he had last caught sight of Reno's electromag rod. Escape would have been the smarter option, but Cloud knew better than to attempt it when Reno was still too weak to stand on his own. The option of escaping and leaving Reno behind was not even worth considering. His mind made up, Cloud shoved all the healing Materias he had in his possession, as well as the Lunar Harp, into Reno's hands. "While I distract him, turn around and head towards the Sleeping Forest," said Cloud softly so that only Reno could hear him. "A path will open up for you. Stay there and stay hidden."

Reno jolted into instant rigidity in his arms. When he spoke, there was an undercurrent of outrage in his voice. "If I have the strength now, I would have knocked your teeth out for daring to suggest that."

Cloud hardened his heart to exhibit cruelty that he was usually not capable of. He would rather have Reno alive and furious with him than… the other scenario that he did not even want to think about. "You're a hindrance, Reno. You're useless here. Get lost before you get killed." Without waiting for the Turk's response, Cloud dropped Reno on to the ground and slowly approached the silver-haired man who was silently watching them. He didn't turn around to see the expression on Reno's face and he didn't want to. He could only hope that Reno had the sense to follow his instructions.

It was truly unfair, Cloud thought as he faced off Sephiroth, to be offered life so shortly before death comes to claim him in the form of his most dangerous enemy.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N:** Believe it or not, the original ending I intended for this story is one whereby we don't know what the outcome of Cloud and Sephiroth's fight is, we don't know if Reno lives or dies, and we don't know whether Cloud and Reno would ever get back together. Something like what you've just read… And if you're anything like me, you'll feel like kicking the writer for coming up with such a crappy ending. So does this mean that there'll be another chapter? Most likely, yes.

I like happy endings. Sue me.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** There are a few disjointed and potentially confusing scenes ahead, but hopefully they will still make sense to most of you. Also, this story has AU elements to it, so if you find parts that don't tally with the FFVII universe you're familiar with, you know the reason.

**Snapshots**

**A Final Fantasy VII Fanfiction by ntc**

_Part 7_

Reno remembered the first time he had allowed Cloud to be taken by someone else. It was his own decision that time. He had understood how much Zack had meant to Cloud, and how much Cloud longed to return to his side. Despite all the hardships and danger that the SOLDIER had put Cloud through by rebelling against Shinra, Cloud had never once blamed Zack. Cloud's loyalty to Zack was absolute; as was his adoration. Reno was initially puzzled as to why Shinra's greatest traitor would keep a liability like Cloud, a non-combatant who didn't even know how to use the most basic of Materias, close to him. Reno gradually discovered the reason for that during the short period of his imposed association with the blond. Cloud had an uncanny ability of wresting a fierce protectiveness from the people around him, and Reno found himself falling under the same spell.

And that was why Reno had to send Cloud away, before the dangerous attachment could become too strong to break.

"Here." Reno deposited his nightstick in Cloud's hands. "Gimme a couple of good whacks to the back of my head. Make sure I get some impressive bruises to show later."

Cloud eyed the telescoping baton with obvious distaste. "This is insane. I'm not going to hit you."

"Look, you have two choices— Zack or Tseng. I'll have to hand you over to one of them. Which one would you rather go with?"

"You know my answer to that. I just don't see the point of bashing your head with this barbaric weapon."

"Do you have any idea how much I'm risking by setting you free?" Reno snapped in irritation at Cloud's hesitation. "I can get fired for this, and I'm not talking about terms of employment here."

"Why are you doing this then?" Cloud asked quietly. "Why are you risking so much…?"

"Let's call it a temporary lapse in judgement on my part." An inner voice whispered: _Isn't that how some people have described love?_ Reno mentally took hold of that inner voice of his and throttled it. "Why do I even need to explain my actions to you? Just do what I say and be grateful that you won't have to experience Tseng's interrogation methods first hand. He was never quite convinced that you're an innocent party in all this mess."

"No matter what, I still won't hit you." Cloud shook his head and pressed the nightstick back into Reno's hands. "You'll just have to concoct another tale as to how I managed to escape from you."

"Why? Are you so afraid of getting your hands dirty, Shorty?" Reno attempted a sneer but his heart wasn't in it.

"Goading me won't work, Reno. I refuse to hurt you, and I refuse to get you in trouble. If the only way for you to be spared Tseng's wrath is for me to stay, I'll stay." The words were spoken with such sincere conviction, with no thought as to their impact on his sole listener.

Reno fought down his sudden impulse to hug the blond. He had to find a way to get Cloud as far away from him as possible, and soon. "Fine, I'll think of something. Just get out of my sight before I change my mind."

Cloud was about to argue further but Reno pointedly turned his back on him at that moment, the gesture a silent demand for Cloud to leave. Reno felt almost relieved when he heard the rustle of grass that signified that Cloud was walking away. However, in the last moment, he could not resist turning back for one final look. His mouth betrayed him before his brain could kick in. "Be warned, Shorty," he called out. "Next time, I won't let you go so easily."

Cloud looked back at him, the expression of surprise on his face slowly dissolved into a small smile. No doubt it was the prospect of being reunited with Zack that had instilled such genuine joy in that simple smile. "I'll never forget this, Reno. Thank you."

As Cloud disappeared from sight, Reno whispered, "I won't ever let you go again."

xXxXxXx

"Hey, mister."

Reno felt someone tugging on the sleeve of his jacket. He tried to slap the offending hand away but his arms wouldn't move. He couldn't even summon the energy to open his eyes. Even staying conscious was an effort. Already, he could feel oblivion coming to claim him once more. Some part of him was welcoming the numbness and lack of thought that came with that oblivion.

"You're bleeding, mister. I'll go get some help, okay? Hang in there." Reno could hear the pattering of tiny feet.

There was something that Reno was refusing to think about. He knew that if he did that, he would lose his mind. He even wished that he was dying, just so he could avoid having to think about…

_Gods…_

What had he done?

xXxXxXx

"Don't take him away from me." Reno almost didn't recognize his own voice; a croaky voice that was desperate and close to begging. He didn't care if he was begging or not. His pride meant nothing to him now. "Please."

"He doesn't belong to you." The tone was neutral, as if the speaker was merely voicing an observation.

"I know." Reno's hands were still clutching the hem of the dark-coloured cloak worn by the speaker. "But I belong to him."

A period of silence stretched; and just when Reno thought that his plea was actually heard and granted, a boot abruptly swung into his field of vision and connected with his temple.

And that was the last thing he remembered.

xXxXxXx

He waited patiently for the pale fighter to regain consciousness. He had spent nearly an hour stripping away the blood-soaked shirt and patching up the wound where his sword had gone through the upper chest, close to the right shoulder. He had been careless; so careless. He had never expected the blue-eyed man to hurl himself into the path of the sword strike that was meant to impale the redhead who was shooting at him.

His attempt to talk with Cloud Strife was a complete failure. There was too much rage; too much overt hostility. He suspected that it had something to do with the injuries he had inflicted on Cloud Strife's companion. Companions. Yes, there was no doubt that they were companions. What was it that the redhead had said earlier? Something about belonging to each other and such… A strange and fascinating sentiment. That could partly explain Cloud Strife's illogical actions. And what were Cloud Strife's words to him after he had bought the redhead's life with his own life's blood? '_I won't let you take away what's important to me. Never again.'_

The word 'again' struck him. Had he done something similar to Cloud Strife in the past? He couldn't remember. He hated that. The not-remembering.

But there was one thing that he was sure of. Cloud Strife was just like him. They shared the same stigma; the same unnaturally luminous eyes. Also, the blond fighter's speed and strength could match his, when no one else he had encountered before this had even come close. Cloud Strife had fought him with the redhead's electric rod that had fallen on the ground; and it was not hard to believe that the only reason he had the upper hand in that battle was because of the blond's obvious unfamiliarity with the weapon he wielded. He was certain that Cloud Strife would have been a much more formidable opponent if he had a broadsword with him.

Even so, the battle had not been an easy one. He had tried to avoid injuring Cloud Strife, the one whom he needed to get answers from. It was his intention to tire the other fighter out before attempting to disarm him, but that plan was blown to smithereens by the annoying redhead who just wouldn't sit quietly on the sidelines. Enraged by the flying bullets, he had moved to get rid of the distraction, only to have Cloud Strife bear the brunt of his punishment on the redhead.

As he watched the wounded man lying on the ground next to him, his eyes strayed to the black-streaked left arm that was exposed. He could remember bearing a similar mark before, though his body no longer carried such a mark. It was a mark of death; a slow and painful one. The thought of losing Cloud Strife to something like this, after he had spent so much time and effort looking for him, was unbearable. He couldn't let Cloud Strife die. He didn't want to be alone again; to be sole survivor of his kind. Perhaps Cloud Strife could overcome the mark the same way he had gotten rid of his.

xXxXxXx

"Mister, you have to eat something. You'll waste away if you don't."

Reno barely registered the gentle voice and the tray of broth and bread that was being pushed towards him. It wasn't just his injuries that were making him weak and unresponsive. Not just his stubborn refusal to eat or drink. The part of him that used to fight tooth-and-nail for survival just didn't want to do so anymore.

They had hidden his gun from him. Or was it that he didn't have any more bullets on him? Either way, that option was denied to him. Can a man actually will himself to stop breathing? Starvation was actually quite a difficult means of suicide; one that was agonizingly slow. No matter. A quick death was something he did not deserve anyway.

They came for him on the fourth day. He was not entirely sure what he did or said while they were forcefully dragging him from the hut where he was pining away. He fought like a rabid animal, clawing and hissing at his captors to get them to release him. They held onto him tightly, and Reno began to regret not building up his strength when he had the chance. A prick of hypodermic needle was the last thing he felt before the welcoming oblivion came for him once more.

xXxXxXx

During the first few days they were together, Cloud Strife refused to say a single word to him. His actions were a language of their own though. Those blue eyes blazed with only disdain and defiance every time they fell on him. Initially, he had to force food into the blond's mouth to get him to eat; forcing him to choose between choking and swallowing. The indignity of it all eventually taught Cloud Strife to feed himself. He had lost count of the number of times the blond had attempted to escape. And when those attempts failed, Cloud Strife would charge at him barehanded, raining blows on him with folded knuckles and chopping his hands like axe blades. He would ward off the blows for as long as he could before putting an end to the fight with a burst of electricity from the rod he had confiscated earlier. The weapon proved itself to be very useful, with its ability to stun and paralyze an opponent without causing any real danger to life. He would then wordlessly carry the blond back to their campsite, all the while ignoring the fierce glower from his captive.

It was Cloud Strife who finally broke the tension-filled silence. "Why are you doing this? Do you keep me around for your amusement? Am I a toy for you to play with?"

He could feel his temper fraying at the unfair accusation but managed to keep it in check. "I just wanted to talk, but you wouldn't let me. You've left me with no choice."

"I have nothing to say to you, and I can't bear another second with you. Why don't you get it over with and kill me now? Just do me a favour and burn my body to ashes when you're done."

"Stop talking like an insolent child. You know very well that if my intention was to kill you, we wouldn't even be arguing right now." The effects of the electric rod had worn off sufficiently for Cloud Strife to turn his head away from him but he forced the blond to meet his eyes by holding onto his chin with one hand. "Why wouldn't you at least make the effort to converse with me in a civil manner?"

"Why?" Cloud Strife tried to pull his head away to no avail. "Because I have nothing but contempt for you, that's why."

"You lie. I saw the photograph you took."

"Photo…?" For the first time, a crack began to show in the shield of steadfast enmity that Cloud Strife had chosen to wrap around himself against him.

"I saw it in a gallery in Kalm. The man in that photograph… the one who looked exactly like me… the one who was known as Sephiroth. He was resting against a tree, and his expression was so serene and unguarded. His eyes were so gentle, without any sign of guile or mistrust in them. For him to appear so vulnerable in front of you, he must've trusted you, maybe even..."

"Enough! Stop tormenting me already!" There was a desperate note in his cry, almost as if the blond was trying to deny something he had kept hidden for a long time. "I… used to respect you. I admired you and, fool that I am, even dreamed of becoming like you. But that's all in the past. Now all I feel towards you is hatred. Only hatred."

It was a step in the right direction. Cloud Strife was beginning to become honest with him, and himself. "It's okay to hate me. I don't want your respect or your admiration. Those feelings are the furthest from true understanding, don't you agree?"

Cloud Strife was taken aback by his answer. "What…?"

"Hate me if you will. It matters little to me. What matters is that I find out who I am. I believe you're the only person who truly understands me; the person I used to be."

"If you really believe that, then you're even crazier than I thought. If you're just after someone who hates you, I can…"

"No, not just hate. Your photograph of Sephiroth does not lie. You had seen the man behind that mask, that image. And I want to find out exactly what it was that you had seen."

Cloud Strife contemplated this before replying, "And what do you hope to achieve with that knowledge?"

"'The ability to change one's looks, voice, and words, is the power of Jenova,'" he quoted from his memory. Even as he spoke it, he knew it to be the truth. For some reason, Cloud Strife appeared startled by his statement. Could it be that the old Sephiroth had said the same thing to him before? "I have changed and I am changing. But I need to know what to change into if I am to consolidate my identity. That is why I need you, Cloud Strife. Will you aid me? I have no right to demand something that you can only give freely."

Cloud Strife did not give him a definite reply. However, from that day on, there were no more escape attempts.

xXxXxXx

"Snap out of it, you sorry excuse for a Turk."

Was that Rude? Maybe even Rufus? Reno did not care. His eyes shifted to the PICC line in his arm that served as a route for liquid sustenance to flow into his body. Damn, that meant that starvation was no longer possible. He would have pulled the line out if his hands weren't shackled to the sides of his bed. Whoever had spoken railed at him for a while longer before giving up and leaving the room.

A woman's pained voice was the next to disturb his peace. "What happened, Reno? Please tell me. What happened to Cloud when both of you were out there?" Reno flinched as if the question was a physical blow. His mind shied away from the image of a bleeding Cloud shielding him, with the tip of a sword protruding out of his back. It was his fault… His fault… His agitated howls and thrashing drew the nursing staff who, to his great relief, escorted the woman out of the room and away from him.

A child's voice was next. A familiar one. The girl was crying and beating her tiny fists on the edge of his bed. "You promised! You promised that you would take care of him!" Reno could offer no words of comfort. He was too consumed by his own grief to care about the grief of others.

Reno did not know how long he stayed in that hospital in his semi-conscious state. It took a visit from _her_ to finally pull him out of his funk and self-pity.

"He wants me to let you know that he's still alive," said the figure in the pink robe without preamble. "He also wants me to remind you of your promise."

"Hell, you're making this up. Why should I even believe you?" He could not allow himself to hope, for it would only prolong his torment. "Go ahead and gloat, now that you're reunited with him at last, you…" He was about to say something unkind that rhymed with 'witch' but he stopped himself at the last moment. "… woman." This was Aeris after all, with the power to turn him into a puff of wispy green Lifestream smoke if she so desired. Besides, the Ancient had not done anything to deserve his ire, aside from owning a piece of Cloud's heart. But he had known that, a long time ago, and had learnt to accept it.

"There's no reason for you to be jealous, Reno." Aeris's smile had an apologetic air to it. "Cloud is still upset with me for what I did or, more accurately, what I didn't do. It'll take some time before he trusts me again."

Reno was not interested in deciphering the Ancient's cryptic words. "I will need more than your word that he is still alive. I need proof."

"He had anticipated that you would say that." As his dream faded, Aeris's final words imprinted themselves on his mind. "You will find the proof you need on the cliffs overlooking the ruins of Midgar. Remember the day…"

xXxXxXx

"You're leaving me."

"Yes. And I would fight you if I have to."

"I won't stop you this time. That look on your face… I can't bear to see it any longer. Do I repulse you so… no, don't answer that. At least tell me why you're leaving me."

"He needs me."

"I need you too."

"There are different degrees of need. You're strong and smart enough to live on your own. He, on the other hand…"

"So, if I turn myself into a pitiful wreck such as him, you'd stay?"

"Isn't it your aim to find out who you truly are? I've done all that I can to help you. I can only provide some of the answers. The rest of it will have to depend on you."

"But I don't wish to become the person I was in the past. That person had tormented you and made you cry. I wish to become someone you want me to be."

"I can't stay with you for precisely this reason. You'll never develop your own individual identity if you meld it so closely with what I hope you'd be."

"I don't care about my identity anymore. The time I've spent with you had taught me what's truly important to me."

"And what might that be?"

"You. Family. Love."

"Haven't we discussed this before? We're not brothers."

"There is no point in denying it. Nothing changes the fact that both our genomes share a common strain. Jenova's strain."

"We're both victims of highly unethical science, nothing more."

"Why do you try so hard to cut all ties with me?"

"I'm not…"

"Don't lie. I know it when people lie to me."

"I just can't do this anymore."

"Do what?"

"This relationship we have isn't healthy. Can't you see that I've been using you all this time? Just look at yourself! Your hair is no longer silver… it's now black… and each day you look more and more like _him_ and it's only a matter of time before I lose touch with reality again and start deluding myself into—"

"Hush. You don't have to say anything more."

"I'm… pathetic, aren't I? Weak and pathetic. How you must despise me."

"I'm disappointed that I can't become the one foremost in your heart and mind without changing into someone else entirely. However, I haven't been truly honest with you too. I've been keeping something secret from you for a while now."

"Secret?"

"I've been deliberately changing my hair colour to black, when it really should've been red."

"What… do you mean by that?"

"It means that it is time for you to return to the pitiful wreck you've left behind. This time, try to be more honest as to why you're returning to his side."

xXxXxXx

It took Reno a long time to convince his well-meaning captors of his mental and emotional stability. Little by little, they gave him back his freedom. The shackles came off when he stopped trying to rip off the lines and other monitoring devices on his person. After a while, they even stopped the intravenous nutrition when he showed signs of consuming adequate amounts of food and drink. Convincing the hospital shrinks that he was okay and not merely faking it was the hardest part. He had to train himself to talk about the incident surrounding Cloud's disappearance with just the right amount of emotion. Too much and they would think him too emotionally labile and at risk of self-harm. Too little, and they would think that he was emotionally shut down, blunted, depressed and god knows what other labels they could think of to slap on him to prevent him from leaving the hospital. The only time he nearly lost it was when they told him of the miraculous Geostigma cure that was found in the Forgotten City. Apparently a mysterious lady had appeared in the dreams of the children in the city to impart that information. The sight of joyous people who had been spared death from Geostigma only served to rub in how much more he had lost.

Rude and Elena were elated at his rapid recovery. Rufus was more skeptical of his turnabout, but had kept his suspicions to himself. As for the rest of the ex-members of AVALANCHE, he had avoided them to the best of his ability. He told no one of Aeris's message to him, or of the day he was waiting for. His aim was to regain his freedom completely before that day.

They did not leave him on his own during his first week out of hospital. Either one of the Turks, or a hapless Shinra guard, would accompany him at all times. He was not allowed near any weapons or even booze. The thinking all around was that he was capable of drinking himself to death if given the chance. They would not be too far off the mark too, if Aeris hadn't given him that foolish and desperate hope to cling onto.

When the day came, Reno knew exactly where he was supposed to go. Only one particular spot on those cliffs held any significance for Cloud; a spot marked by a rusty buster sword. Zack's sword. Incidentally, it was also the same spot where Zack was killed and his body buried in a grave dug by Cloud's own hands.

From a distance, Reno could see something lying on the soil in front of the sword. He broke into a run, not slowing down until he reached the gravesite. A bunch of flowers lay next to the buster sword. Crushed by anger and disappointment, Reno snarled, "What is this supposed to prove?" Was it just some cruel joke by Aeris after all? He snatched up the flowers to hurl them down the cliff, but paused when he noticed the electromag rod that was hidden beneath the flowers.

He sagged onto the ground and picked up the rod with trembling hands. The heavily chipped shaft bore testimony of its use in the battle against Masamune. There was no mistaking it. It was his weapon; the weapon that he had last seen in Cloud's hands. He could not imagine Sephiroth doing something like this, so it could only be Cloud.

"But… if you're still alive… why haven't you come back?" Goddamn it, why was he weeping like a milksop now? Damn the blond for doing this to him! "You liar…"

At that moment, a shadow fell across him and Reno immediately whirled with the electromag rod drawn, battle-ready. His blurred vision only allowed him to make out the long platinum hair that billowed in the wind. He struck out without hesitation but his wrist was caught in a vice-like grip before the rod could make contact. He drew back his other hand and curled his fingers into a fist. Before he could deliver his punch, the person suddenly moved forward to embrace him, catching him by surprise. _Why the hell is Sephiroth…?_

"Gods, Reno, how much weight have you lost?"

That voice…

"I can feel your ribs. And when was the last time you've taken a bath? You seriously need a haircut and a shave too…"

Reno dropped his weapon and pushed the person away far enough so that he could have a closer look at that face. His hands, however, still held fast to those slim shoulders; almost as if he was afraid to let go completely. Mako-blue eyes met his gaze, and it was undoubtedly Cloud. With only one difference…

Reno blurted, "What happened to your hair?"

Cloud laughed. "You haven't seen me for a year and that's the first question you could come up with?" He raised his hands to rest them lightly on Reno's arms, a simple gesture that was oddly tender. "Sephiroth used his own method to treat my Geostigma, and the change in hair colour was one of its… shall we say… side-effects. You're now looking at a complete Sephiroth-clone; though I have to say I feel no different from before. At first, I was half afraid that I would turn into a mindless drone, but all my memories appear to have survived the transformation intact."

"Damn that bastard," Reno growled with feeling. "He hasn't done anything else to you, has he? Nothing perverted, I hope."

Cloud's face reddened, whether in embarrassment or anger, he could not tell. "You sure know how to kill the mood. Is this also part of your training as a Turk?"

"I'm going to pulverize that bastard one day. That's a given. Your answer merely decides whether I actively hunt him down to do so or leave it till we cross paths next time."

"Leave him alone, Reno. He's actually quite harmless if you don't do anything to provoke him."

"Harmless? Him? We're talking about Sephiroth here! His very existence is a threat to the Planet!"

"So am I. Those of us who possess Jenova cells would always run the risk of being controlled by her. He and I have come to an understanding that should madness come upon one of us, the other would carry out the execution necessary to end the madness."

"I still won't forgive him," declared Reno stubbornly before pulling Cloud close to him. "He took one whole year of your life away from me. He deserves a gruesome death for that offence alone." He wrapped his arms around Cloud determinedly, as if he was trying to convince himself of the other man's solidity. "I can't believe you're back. Not as a hallucination or a dream this time, but for real. You've come back to me."

Reno could feel Cloud's smile against his cheek. "I promised, didn't I?"

_(End of fic) _

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**A/N: ****Thanks to all of you who are patient enough to read this story to its conclusion. Cheerio.**


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